Highs and Lows From this Weeks RAW
Last week I tried out a new post here on my blog where I took a look at the past week in the WWE and while I did enjoy writing that and I will be doing that again with this week’s RAW leaving me with so much to discuss I just had to focus on the show this week. Now, I am going to be shaking things up here and there and switching up the content so hopefully, it goes well! For today, let's dive into some of the highs and lows from this weeks Monday night RAW.
Debuting Nikki Cross On RAW
When it was revealed witch NXT stars would be moving over to the main roster this year, I was super excited and relieved to see Nikki Cross amongst the lucky names. After two years in developmental Cross had grown massively becoming one of the biggest and most unique characters, however, her arrival on Monday Night RAW this week did not go down well in my books. With the rest of Sanity working on the Smackdown LIVE roster, It has always felt inevitable that Cross would move to the blue brand upon her call up. A match against Becky Lynch, the rest of Sanity living there, and a generally more opportunistic roster for Cross, Smackdown LIVE has always and for me always will appear to be the better place for her. Nikki joining Monday nights for me just doesn’t make sense and is a decision that could prove massively detrimental to the careers of all three Sanity Members and of course Nikki Cross. Can the WWE’s twisted sister really fit in on the flagship show?
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Crowning Bobby Lashley the New Intercontinental Champion
The Intercontinental Championship triple threat between Bobby Lashley, Dean Ambrose, and Seth Rollins was, in fact, one I was really looking forward to, however, the end result wasn’t what I was expecting to see. Confident the title would remain on Ambrose I was left very much surprised to see Bobby Lashley crowned the new champ. In a decision that had me feeling a tad bit conflicted I was on one side frustrated and concerned for Ambrose, however, on the flip side I was over the moon to finally see Lashley given a title and solid position on the roster. Out of everyone in this match, Lashley was most in need of the win and would benefit the most from holding the IC title making this an up from the night, however, worries about the direction Ambrose will now head in has me very worried!
That Alexa Bliss Moment
I’m honestly not going to spend too long on this part but when we have a segment involving a female superstar being walked in on mid-way through getting dressed… it’s going to leave a few fans a little frustrated. The moment just felt like a step backwards and most certainly didn’t need to be done. After all the work that has been done to elevate women in this industry, I would rather not tune in to one minute moments like this.
The Reveal of the Women’s Tag Team Titles
Speaking of moments, this week saw the second edition of “Moment of Bliss” and I have to be honest, I did again, enjoy the segment. While Heyman and Otis Dozovic’s roles within this moment of the night were interesting and entertaining, to say the least, it was the reveal of the women’s tag team championships was the highlight here and a major positive from this week RAW. The titles themselves looked amazing! Delighted that the design isn’t a copy of what the men’s tag team division asI was very much impressed to see such a unique and stunning design for a main roster title (yes I’m still thinking about the Universal Championship). During this segment, Bliss also gave a major update regarding the championships revealing that in five weeks three teams from RAW and three teams from Smackdown will compete inside the Elimination Chamber with the winners and last remaining team becoming the new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion. I really really liked this booking. Five weeks give enough times for teams to be formed, momentum to build and excitement to really arise. The Elimination Chamber angle is something I didn’t see coming at all but again I’m super excited for this! It’s a different direction to what I thought the WWE would go in for the crowning of these titles but it’s such a strong and risky move and because of that, you must dig it!
Poor Tag Team Division Work Continues
Keeping on the theme of tag team work, I was left again, with mixed feelings about what we saw from the division this week. Over the moon to witness the Revival pick up a much-needed victory, overall the booking for the division was weak. If Monday night RAW is truly failing any area/division, it’s the tag team. Matches are not as strong, storylines are not as entertaining, and there is a general feeling as thought there just isn’t much attention or effort being put in where the tag team division is concerned.
Finn Balor Scoring the Win in the Main Event
It has been a good week for former Universal Champion, Finn Balor. After a surprise appearance at NXT UK Takeover this past Saturday Balor was on a high and beaming with momentum so when he picked up the huge win in this week’s RAW main event securing a Universal Championship match against Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble it was a career highlight for the Irish Star. For months, if not years, Balor has been struggling to get back on top and in a position, he truly belongs in on the roster and only now, at the start of twenty nineteen are we seeing him climb his way there. This is the match Finn has not only been waiting for but deserving of for such a long time and while I doubt the WWE will put the title on him next weekend, the move itself is so strong, so important and so telling. This is the push and the lead back to where he belongs so many fans have been desperate to see since the moment he returned from his injury. Finally, we are seeing Balor become the star he should be and the WWE give him a spotlight and a push I know I believed would never come.
Overall Thoughts
To conclude, this was an interesting week for Monday night RAW. The decision to remove Brock Lesnar from the Universal Championship match at the Royal Rumble was an interesting one and one that sets up potentially a very interesting and exciting story between the Monster Among men and the McMahon Family. Seeing how McIntyre was booked was also very telling an again, I can most certainly see some interesting work there possibly be done also involving the McMahon family. I was disappointed with what we saw from Banks and Rousey this week but overall I did feel this was a better episode than last week.
As always I would love to know what you guys think so feel free to leave a comment below or tweet me over at @TezangiVictoria.
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