Nostalgia and Pure Entertainment: The RAW Episode You Didn't Want to Miss
Following an epic WWE Super Showdown this past Saturday live from Australia this week’s episode of Monday night RAW continued to keep fans entertained and talking thanks to a night full of returns, heel turns, and plenty of nostalgia. Transported back to the early two thousand this was an action-packed episode of RAW and an excellent start to the week for wrestling but with so much happening it means we have plenty to talk about so let's not waste any more time and jump into this week’s huge edition of Monday night RAW.
Are You Ready?
As a kid who grew up in the early two thousands and loving watching nineties clips it was a pretty epic moment seeing DX kick start this week’s episode of Monday Night RAW. Following the shock ending to the Super Showdown show on Saturday Triple H and Shawn Michaels took to the ring to address the actions from the Undertaker and Kane who took it upon themselves to blindside the pair following Takers loss to the Game. In a gripping promo, the DX funders took us down memory lane and closed the promo by challenging the Brothers of Destruction to a tag team match at Crown Jewel. Now, in any other workplace, four middle-aged men beating the crap out of each other would not be acceptable but in this case this one of the most awesome and exciting moments of the year and gave many our first nostalgic feel of the night.
The Double Turn
One of the best matches of the night came from Bobby Lashley and Kevin Owens. While the two were in action on Saturday they were slightly overshadowed by John Cena… and his hair and so the spotlight is given to them this past Monday was much appreciated. The two engaged in an athletic, powerful, and surprisingly fast-paced matchup showcasing themselves to be two big-time underdogs on the roster. Now, I did tweet out that I wanted more from these two and while that remains true it must be said that this part of the night went down very well in my books! I will be uploading a blog post later this week discussing Bobby Lashley’s heel turn but for now, I will most certainly raise the point in saying that so much was done so right here. Lio Rush is an excellent addition to RAW and while many don’t like it I happen to personally enjoy his talking during matches and the fact he managed to basically turn Kevin Owens face on his own in a very interesting and well-done double turn says a lot!
The Evolution main Event is set
If you know me you know that I haven’t been the biggest fan of the idea involving Nikki Bella taking on Ronda Rousey for the RAW Women’s championship and I will admit that that hasn’t changed. I do still believe we would have gotten more and better from Natalya vs Rousey but we can save that conversation for another day. Last nights episode of RAW saw the Bella twins attack Ronda following six-woman tag team action and with many expecting the turn to happen it didn’t surprise many however what I will say is it was done fairly well and there is a story to be told. The match between the two has been made official but whether this screams main event is something I am yet to personally decide.
A Disappointing Change
I’ve mentioned before that I have felt the build for the first ever all women’s pay per view, Evolution has been extremely bad. The WWE has failed to put a strong enough focus on it and I will be uploading a blog post looking at why we should be worried about this show very soon! This week on RAW my worries were heightened when it was revealed that Mickie James and Alexa Bliss will instead team to face Lita and Trish Stratus. Of course, I marked out like a kid when Lita’s music hit but the two singles match these women were originally set to take part in for me had so much more to offer than a tag team match. Yes, it ensures we see Mickie and Trish share a ring again but for me personally this is a huge step back and a decision that could really hinder the PPV. Bliss would really have benefited from a singles bout while there was something very satisfying about Lita vs Mickie. This for me is a real shame.
Kurt Angle Returns
The World Cup Idea is one that really does entertain me. The likes of Finn Balor and Andrade Cien Almas could really benefit from this! However, the focus on Monday regarding this mini-tournament fell on Baron Corbin who used a Battle Royal to earn a spot, but things didn’t quite go to plan. Setting up an array of local competitors this initially was supposed to be an easy cheap way to get himself an opportunity but in a little twist, a masked Kurt Angle eliminated the former US champion taking away a huge spot from Corbin. I must admit I was very much surprised to see Kurt back on RAW this week, but it added to the nostalgia, build for Crown Jewel and of course, was an overall special moment of the night adding to that hour of the show.
A Perfect Story
In all honesty we don’t give the WWE enough credit for amazing storylines and that’s often because up on the main roster we see a lot of weak storyline’s that fail to live up to either past or NXT levels, however, the current story being told with the Shield along with McIntyre, Ziggler, and Strowman is simply fantastic. We have so much going on and this was massively displayed in this week's RAW main event. From Strowman’s frustrations to Ziggler being dubbed as the weak link of his team, Ambrose losing the match for the Shield and the WWE teasing his turn still, as well as Braun and Roman feuding for the title and McIntyre now teasing a future feud with Strowman. This was the match of the night for many this week and these six superstars continue to dominate RAW both in the ring and through their storytelling.
And that was this week’s episode of Monday Night RAW. I know that’s it’s pretty rare nowadays that I write RAW and Smackdown LIVE reviews but with so many epic moments, returns, heel turns, a Paul Heyman promo and strong in ring work I just had to write about what went down! As always, I would love to know what you guys thought so feel free to leave a comment below or tweet me over at @TezangiVictoria.
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