RAW Review and Reactions
 |
| NXT Divas made their presence known |
This weeks Monday night RAW kick started with Paul Heyman and the number one contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, Brock Lesnar. I was very pleased to see Lesnar open the show again. Two weeks in a row is a good for me. I don't know about you but I have really enjoyed watching Lesnar have s many TV appearances lately. No, it's not as many as most superstars but he is a part timer and we are seeing him much much more than we usually do and I'm loving it. He's frequent appearances have made this build up simply amazing and it really has excited me for the main event. It's nice seeing the Battleground pay per view, witch comes across as a pretty weak show, look so strong thanks to a big build up to the main event. So credit to both creative and Lesnar and Heyman for the work for the main event picture recently. The opening promo delivered by Heyman was nothing less than amazing. Taking the WWE universe through the impressive reseme of he's client. Recapping the things Lesnar has achieved in he's career and further hyping the Battleground main event. It was made official last night; Paul Heyman can sell ANY match at ANY time. He really got the crowd going and excited for last night shows and Sunday's pay per view. I thought it was very interesting seeing Seth Rollins interrupt Heyman and he's opening promo. This is twice now we have seen the champ interrupt a Heyman promo and it did not sit well with the live crowd. He was doing pretty well defending himself and pushing he's side of the match even more until he slipped up a little but hey I will give it to Rollins, he pulled it together really well and made it fit in pretty well with the segment. Even hearing Lesnar speak last night put a huge smile on my face. Honestly, it's the little things in life that make me happy and this made my freaking night. I loved the humour from Heyman last night. He kept me so entertained throughout the segment. The contract signing was announced during this segment and I thought that the all round opening was great. It all went down really well with me and it did the job. It got me excited for the night and the Battleground main event. Everyone did their jobs perfectly and it was nice seeing an opening I actually liked.
The first match of the night this week was a tag team match witch saw Randy Orton team up with the Intercontinental champion Ryback to take on the team of The big show and Mr money in the bank, Sheamus. I had a couple of problems with this match and I'm sure you know what they are. The first is the fact that we were once again seeing the Battleground triple threat for the IC match advertised an promoted as a one on one. It is not a one on one, it's a triple threat. The WWE have had over four weeks to push a big triple threat match for this title but they haven't done that. It still feels as though the Miz has no role in this match and that he shouldn't be in it. If we were getting a one on one between Ryback and Show for it then I would be delighted. The two have great chemistry and we have had such a strong build up between the two of them so I would have really enjoyed that but this match just made it feel like a one on one even more and hated that. Having Miz at commentary again just wasn't good enough in my eyes. I also wasn't all that sure on Sheamus and Orton have the chance to compete against one another before Battleground this weekend. It would have been nice to see them take on individual opponents in singles matches last night but I wanted to stay positive and if this match was done right then I was sure it was going to be a decent match. The match last night saw Sheamus attempt to take early control but it didn't take long for the tables to turn and for Ryback to take control of the match. The one good thing I do have to say about this match was it did allow us to see a little snip-it of what is to come between Orton and Sheamus this weekend but for me I just would of liked to see them save it and really bring it and go at it on Sunday. Sheamus did struggle early on in this match to gain control and get a good flow but things did turn around for him and Show and Big Show made the tag and really started taking it to Ryback but it didn't last long due tot he fact Big Show spent like thirty seconds competing. I would of liked to have seen more of Ryback in this match and more of Big Show in the match witch I never thought I would say. I gained more interest inn the match when Show and Sheamus took control of the match. I am more for the heels and I thought the time they spent in control and taking it to Orton were some of the best moments even if it didn't last all that long. I did feel as though Sheamus needed the win last night but I also felt that so did Orton so it was hard to call. It was pretty funny seeing Miz get chased by the Big show and it was interesting seeing the annoying little role Miz played. It was entertaining to say the least. I felt like the match was a little messy and not a great start to the show but I thought the ending was done really well. Orton and Ryback picked up some great momentum and I just liked the closing moments of this one.
We then had a one on one match between Bray Wyatt and Dean Ambrose. I was so so glad this match was booked for the show last night. I thought it was a great booking choice for both superstars. I mentioned in my RAW Predictions post (witch will be linked bellow) that I really wanted to see Bray Wyatt compete on RAW this week. I think it was really important that he showed up last night and actually competed. Its rare that we see Wyatt compete on RAW but it's what he needed to gain even
more momentum and add some more heat and interest to he's Battleground match against Roman Reigns. It was only a couple of weeks ago that these two had a great match on Smackdown and we know from their past that they can put on some phenomenal matches so this is exactly what they both needed. If Bray was to have a long, good match last night it would give him all the momentum he would have needed. As for Ambrose he currently isn't in anything strong so taking on Wyatt was perfect for him even if he was booked to loose the match. It's still strong booking for him and Wyatt is an opponent that will allow him to shine and keep interest in him going strong so I was looking forward to this one. However, before any bell could be rang Roman Reigns came rushing down the ramp and having a sneak attack on Wyatt. I absolutely loved this! I was really looking forward to the match but this is exactly what Reigns needed. He needed that sneak attack on Wyatt for momentum but it is also really what the storyline and feud needed. We needed more interest, more entertainment and we needed something to get us excited for the one on one between them this Sunday. It did the job and was a great addition to the show. The problem I did have with this was that I would of actually liked to have seen a match and maybe the attack half way throughout. That was the one disappoint thing about this apart of the show.
When it came to the divas action this week it was announced on the RAW pre show that divas champion, Nikki Bella would be addressing the divas division. Now, a couple of hours before RAW had started the picture of Charlotte, Becky Lynch and current NXT Women't champion Sasha Banks arrive at RAW surfaced twitter and everyone went mental. Literally everyone got super excited about the possibility that any one of these divas could be debuting last night and the news of Nikki addressing the Divas division just made us all believe we were going to see a debut last night and I have to admit after hearing that news I couldn't help but get excited and get my hopes up even though I had spent most of the night convincing myself that it wasn't a good idea to go getting my hopes up any time soon. However, for the first time in a long time I and so many others were excited and looking forward to a divas segment witch was a great change. Now, when I say this was the best divas segment I have ever seen, I freaking mean it. This was just the best divas segment I have ever freaking seen. So, Nikki started out by claiming she was the total diva and had no competition in the divas division, claiming she was unstoppable with Brie and Alicia by her side she was staying on top. We then had Stephanie McMahon come down to the ring and give the champ a little taste of reality and we had some huge news come our way. We saw Paige come down to the ring and Stephanie would announce Becky Lynch and Charlotte as her team mates. Now, I honestly marked the fuck out at this. I have never ever been this excited for a divas segment and it only got better. After Naomi and Tamina came out claiming they too had a problem with the Bella's and Paige we had Stephanie McMahon introduce NXT Women's champion Sasha Banks. Now the pop Sasha got was freaking insane. I was sitting at home and I marked out like crazy and it felt so good hearing the huge response all the girls got last night. We got huge this is awesome chants from the crowd and I honestly was the happiest person alive. The commentary was amazing, the chants and the reactions were great and for the first time ever on RAW I was interested and entertained by a divas segment. The brawl was simply epic and the NXT girls really took over. I was by far a history making moment. Last night was a huge change in the divas division. Even after the commentary the commentary team continued to talk about it. This is a huge change in the divas division and a whole new day for them. Epic moment and by far my moment of the night. Time for a change in the divas division and I couldn't be more proud. I think this as a huge message to the world that NXT really is taking over.
Up next was tag team action as the New day took on the team of Mark Henry and the tag team champions, the prime time players. I liked the promo from the New day before the match I thought it was really well done, entertaining and a nice little addition to the show. I didn't mind the booking but I didn't get why they had turnt Mark Henry face again when he was a big heel last week but it didn't really surprise me. The match was decent. nothing special or super interesting but I was very interested in it after being woken up so much by the previous segment. I would of liked to have seen the New day pick up the win just because I feel like they needed it more but it was a good match and it made sense so can't complain too much. After that we had the worse moment of the night when R-truth defeated Barrett. I'm not even going to comment on this.
We then had John Cena's United States Championship open challenge witch saw Rusev come out to accept the challenge however he was soon interrupted by Cesaro and the man who face John Cena this Sunday at Battleground for the championship, Kevin Owens. I have to say, the things that came out of Rusev's mouth before any match began had me in stitches! He was coming out with the one line insults like a machine. Loved it.To decide who would face Cena last night all three superstars competed in a triple threat and what a match it was. Easily the match of the night. There's no doubt about that. These are three of my favourite competitors and three of the best in ring competitors in all of the WWE. I thought this was perfect booking. All three superstars brought something completely different to the table and they just worked perfectly together. In the early stages we saw the bigger Kevin Owens and Rusev go straight to Cesaro and when they thought they had worn him down they started on each other, but this is Cesaro we are talking about and he did not just sit in the corner and watch the action. For me Cesaro was the stand out of this match. He brought and delivered to such a high standard. He gave both Owens and Rusev a run for their money and pushed them both to their limits. But in return they also gave Cesaro a run for he's money and pushed him to he's limits. They all brought out the best in each other and pushed each other to such a high level. Cesaro took some huge bumps last night and there were a couple of times I had to double check my TV to see if he was actually okay. It was a very very physical match, packed with such great quality, pure wrestling. I haven't seen that much talent, that much diversity, and that much passion in one ring in a long time and it was great. What was so amazing about this match too was the fact that these guys were all NXT guys. This was such a good showing of how the future is now. The guys of tomorrow are taking the spotlight today and they completely owned the night. Half way through the match Kevin Owens walked off witch I thought was great. I love it when Owens does that, its such a great heel move and it always works, last night was no different. Even when Owens did walk off Rusev and Cesaro still owned it and carried on putting on one heck of a match. This will easily bee featured in my top twenty of the month this month. The only thing that I didn't like about this was the ending. I was expecting Rusev to win this match anyway and I was fine with that, Owens walking off was a huge indication that Rusev was winning, after all Cesaro has had two straight opportunities and so I was expecting it. I'm glad the match ended by pin fall but I just felt like we needed something bigger to have Cesaro get pinned but I'm not going to complain too much because the match was just amazing. They got a great deal of time witch made me so so happy. Cesaro had such a great connection with the live crowd. Anyone who says Cesaro cannot connect with the fans clearly is watching something different tot he rest of the world, and what Rusev got last night was exactly what he needed.
So of course after Rusev had won the triple threat he got to face a fresh Cena for the Unite States championship and after the amazing match we just got from the triple threat I wasn't expecting all that much from this match if I'm being honest but theses guys have got such a great history and so much chemistry I knew that these two could easily put on another great match. Of course being so fresh and ready, John Cena did take very very early on control of this match, witch was to be expected but Rusev didn't give up quickly at all and carried on going, fighting back. I had to give it to Rusev, he had a great match before this one and he did take on Cena straight after so congrats to him. He really impressed me last night. Just as I was really starting to get into the match Owens came out and attacked both Rusev and Cena witch I thought was the perfect way to end the night. I really enjoyed this part of the night. As some of you may have been aware before the show, the two thousand and fifteen Tough Enough competitors were backstage at RAW for the first time and they all made a little appearance last night when Lita introduced all of them. Patrick and ZZ got a great reaction form the crowd with Sara Lee getting the best reaction for the girls. Tanner not a great reaction but it was a reaction so good for him. We also got a little promo from Stardust and I'm so glad he got such a big pop. I almost had a little tear come down my face when I saw him last night. He's obviously had a really difficult past month and he just came booking looking great last night. It was of course the first TV appearance from Stardust/Cody since he's father, Dusty Rhodes past away and he got such a great welcome back last night. He return match did see him take on Adrian Neville witch I thought was a great booking move to make. I have to admit, I would of enjoyed this match much much more if Stardust was instead Cody Rhodes. I'm still waiting for him to get the change back to Cody because I'm really not a fan of the Stardust gimmick, I never have been but he does it well so I can't complain too much. I thought the match was good. Easy to get into, nothing special, and I know these two can do more and better but it was a nice win for Stardust.
Closing the show this week was of course the contract signing for the WWE World heavyweight Championship match set to take place this Sunday at Battleground between current champ Seth Rollins and former champ Brock Lesnar. I actually mentioned in my RAW Prediction post this week
that I was expecting to see a contract signing last night so I was pretty pleased to see one and I was expecting some interesting stuff to go down. After al this was a contract signing and Seth Rollins had spent a month pissing off the beast so we had to expect some s**t to go down. Before we actually got the contract signing Seth Rollins had a little moan about the footage of the car being destroyed being shown over and over again. He went on to have a little brag about the things he has done over the past month. I didn't really enjoy hearing what Seth had to say. It just felt like we had heard it all before, a million times and I lost interest. I only really gained interest when Lesnar and Heyman came out. The words from Heyman had me cheering at my TV like I was crazy again but I did all round enjoy the contract signing. The closing moments were just perfect and I was so entertained. Poor Kane didn't have a great night at all. I really enjoyed this entire segment.
I thought this was a great show. We had one great stand out match witch was of course the triple threat, but we also got some great segments. The divas sold the show in my opinion. It felt so good hearing the reaction and seeing the attention the women got last night and I was very very proud and happy. The work between Lesnar and Rollins was also really strong and Paul Heyman did a great job getting me excited for the Battleground main event. All round I would rate this show an eight out of ten but let me know what YOU thought of the show by leaving a comment bellow or by tweeting me at @TezangiVictoria.
The first match of the night this week was a tag team match witch saw Randy Orton team up with the Intercontinental champion Ryback to take on the team of The big show and Mr money in the bank, Sheamus. I had a couple of problems with this match and I'm sure you know what they are. The first is the fact that we were once again seeing the Battleground triple threat for the IC match advertised an promoted as a one on one. It is not a one on one, it's a triple threat. The WWE have had over four weeks to push a big triple threat match for this title but they haven't done that. It still feels as though the Miz has no role in this match and that he shouldn't be in it. If we were getting a one on one between Ryback and Show for it then I would be delighted. The two have great chemistry and we have had such a strong build up between the two of them so I would have really enjoyed that but this match just made it feel like a one on one even more and hated that. Having Miz at commentary again just wasn't good enough in my eyes. I also wasn't all that sure on Sheamus and Orton have the chance to compete against one another before Battleground this weekend. It would have been nice to see them take on individual opponents in singles matches last night but I wanted to stay positive and if this match was done right then I was sure it was going to be a decent match. The match last night saw Sheamus attempt to take early control but it didn't take long for the tables to turn and for Ryback to take control of the match. The one good thing I do have to say about this match was it did allow us to see a little snip-it of what is to come between Orton and Sheamus this weekend but for me I just would of liked to see them save it and really bring it and go at it on Sunday. Sheamus did struggle early on in this match to gain control and get a good flow but things did turn around for him and Show and Big Show made the tag and really started taking it to Ryback but it didn't last long due tot he fact Big Show spent like thirty seconds competing. I would of liked to have seen more of Ryback in this match and more of Big Show in the match witch I never thought I would say. I gained more interest inn the match when Show and Sheamus took control of the match. I am more for the heels and I thought the time they spent in control and taking it to Orton were some of the best moments even if it didn't last all that long. I did feel as though Sheamus needed the win last night but I also felt that so did Orton so it was hard to call. It was pretty funny seeing Miz get chased by the Big show and it was interesting seeing the annoying little role Miz played. It was entertaining to say the least. I felt like the match was a little messy and not a great start to the show but I thought the ending was done really well. Orton and Ryback picked up some great momentum and I just liked the closing moments of this one.
We then had a one on one match between Bray Wyatt and Dean Ambrose. I was so so glad this match was booked for the show last night. I thought it was a great booking choice for both superstars. I mentioned in my RAW Predictions post (witch will be linked bellow) that I really wanted to see Bray Wyatt compete on RAW this week. I think it was really important that he showed up last night and actually competed. Its rare that we see Wyatt compete on RAW but it's what he needed to gain even
 |
| Roman Reigns sneak attacks Bray Wyatt |
When it came to the divas action this week it was announced on the RAW pre show that divas champion, Nikki Bella would be addressing the divas division. Now, a couple of hours before RAW had started the picture of Charlotte, Becky Lynch and current NXT Women't champion Sasha Banks arrive at RAW surfaced twitter and everyone went mental. Literally everyone got super excited about the possibility that any one of these divas could be debuting last night and the news of Nikki addressing the Divas division just made us all believe we were going to see a debut last night and I have to admit after hearing that news I couldn't help but get excited and get my hopes up even though I had spent most of the night convincing myself that it wasn't a good idea to go getting my hopes up any time soon. However, for the first time in a long time I and so many others were excited and looking forward to a divas segment witch was a great change. Now, when I say this was the best divas segment I have ever seen, I freaking mean it. This was just the best divas segment I have ever freaking seen. So, Nikki started out by claiming she was the total diva and had no competition in the divas division, claiming she was unstoppable with Brie and Alicia by her side she was staying on top. We then had Stephanie McMahon come down to the ring and give the champ a little taste of reality and we had some huge news come our way. We saw Paige come down to the ring and Stephanie would announce Becky Lynch and Charlotte as her team mates. Now, I honestly marked the fuck out at this. I have never ever been this excited for a divas segment and it only got better. After Naomi and Tamina came out claiming they too had a problem with the Bella's and Paige we had Stephanie McMahon introduce NXT Women's champion Sasha Banks. Now the pop Sasha got was freaking insane. I was sitting at home and I marked out like crazy and it felt so good hearing the huge response all the girls got last night. We got huge this is awesome chants from the crowd and I honestly was the happiest person alive. The commentary was amazing, the chants and the reactions were great and for the first time ever on RAW I was interested and entertained by a divas segment. The brawl was simply epic and the NXT girls really took over. I was by far a history making moment. Last night was a huge change in the divas division. Even after the commentary the commentary team continued to talk about it. This is a huge change in the divas division and a whole new day for them. Epic moment and by far my moment of the night. Time for a change in the divas division and I couldn't be more proud. I think this as a huge message to the world that NXT really is taking over.
Up next was tag team action as the New day took on the team of Mark Henry and the tag team champions, the prime time players. I liked the promo from the New day before the match I thought it was really well done, entertaining and a nice little addition to the show. I didn't mind the booking but I didn't get why they had turnt Mark Henry face again when he was a big heel last week but it didn't really surprise me. The match was decent. nothing special or super interesting but I was very interested in it after being woken up so much by the previous segment. I would of liked to have seen the New day pick up the win just because I feel like they needed it more but it was a good match and it made sense so can't complain too much. After that we had the worse moment of the night when R-truth defeated Barrett. I'm not even going to comment on this.
We then had John Cena's United States Championship open challenge witch saw Rusev come out to accept the challenge however he was soon interrupted by Cesaro and the man who face John Cena this Sunday at Battleground for the championship, Kevin Owens. I have to say, the things that came out of Rusev's mouth before any match began had me in stitches! He was coming out with the one line insults like a machine. Loved it.To decide who would face Cena last night all three superstars competed in a triple threat and what a match it was. Easily the match of the night. There's no doubt about that. These are three of my favourite competitors and three of the best in ring competitors in all of the WWE. I thought this was perfect booking. All three superstars brought something completely different to the table and they just worked perfectly together. In the early stages we saw the bigger Kevin Owens and Rusev go straight to Cesaro and when they thought they had worn him down they started on each other, but this is Cesaro we are talking about and he did not just sit in the corner and watch the action. For me Cesaro was the stand out of this match. He brought and delivered to such a high standard. He gave both Owens and Rusev a run for their money and pushed them both to their limits. But in return they also gave Cesaro a run for he's money and pushed him to he's limits. They all brought out the best in each other and pushed each other to such a high level. Cesaro took some huge bumps last night and there were a couple of times I had to double check my TV to see if he was actually okay. It was a very very physical match, packed with such great quality, pure wrestling. I haven't seen that much talent, that much diversity, and that much passion in one ring in a long time and it was great. What was so amazing about this match too was the fact that these guys were all NXT guys. This was such a good showing of how the future is now. The guys of tomorrow are taking the spotlight today and they completely owned the night. Half way through the match Kevin Owens walked off witch I thought was great. I love it when Owens does that, its such a great heel move and it always works, last night was no different. Even when Owens did walk off Rusev and Cesaro still owned it and carried on putting on one heck of a match. This will easily bee featured in my top twenty of the month this month. The only thing that I didn't like about this was the ending. I was expecting Rusev to win this match anyway and I was fine with that, Owens walking off was a huge indication that Rusev was winning, after all Cesaro has had two straight opportunities and so I was expecting it. I'm glad the match ended by pin fall but I just felt like we needed something bigger to have Cesaro get pinned but I'm not going to complain too much because the match was just amazing. They got a great deal of time witch made me so so happy. Cesaro had such a great connection with the live crowd. Anyone who says Cesaro cannot connect with the fans clearly is watching something different tot he rest of the world, and what Rusev got last night was exactly what he needed.
So of course after Rusev had won the triple threat he got to face a fresh Cena for the Unite States championship and after the amazing match we just got from the triple threat I wasn't expecting all that much from this match if I'm being honest but theses guys have got such a great history and so much chemistry I knew that these two could easily put on another great match. Of course being so fresh and ready, John Cena did take very very early on control of this match, witch was to be expected but Rusev didn't give up quickly at all and carried on going, fighting back. I had to give it to Rusev, he had a great match before this one and he did take on Cena straight after so congrats to him. He really impressed me last night. Just as I was really starting to get into the match Owens came out and attacked both Rusev and Cena witch I thought was the perfect way to end the night. I really enjoyed this part of the night. As some of you may have been aware before the show, the two thousand and fifteen Tough Enough competitors were backstage at RAW for the first time and they all made a little appearance last night when Lita introduced all of them. Patrick and ZZ got a great reaction form the crowd with Sara Lee getting the best reaction for the girls. Tanner not a great reaction but it was a reaction so good for him. We also got a little promo from Stardust and I'm so glad he got such a big pop. I almost had a little tear come down my face when I saw him last night. He's obviously had a really difficult past month and he just came booking looking great last night. It was of course the first TV appearance from Stardust/Cody since he's father, Dusty Rhodes past away and he got such a great welcome back last night. He return match did see him take on Adrian Neville witch I thought was a great booking move to make. I have to admit, I would of enjoyed this match much much more if Stardust was instead Cody Rhodes. I'm still waiting for him to get the change back to Cody because I'm really not a fan of the Stardust gimmick, I never have been but he does it well so I can't complain too much. I thought the match was good. Easy to get into, nothing special, and I know these two can do more and better but it was a nice win for Stardust.
Closing the show this week was of course the contract signing for the WWE World heavyweight Championship match set to take place this Sunday at Battleground between current champ Seth Rollins and former champ Brock Lesnar. I actually mentioned in my RAW Prediction post this week
 |
| WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins |
I thought this was a great show. We had one great stand out match witch was of course the triple threat, but we also got some great segments. The divas sold the show in my opinion. It felt so good hearing the reaction and seeing the attention the women got last night and I was very very proud and happy. The work between Lesnar and Rollins was also really strong and Paul Heyman did a great job getting me excited for the Battleground main event. All round I would rate this show an eight out of ten but let me know what YOU thought of the show by leaving a comment bellow or by tweeting me at @TezangiVictoria.
Comments
Post a Comment