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From Seth Rollins stomping Drew McIntyre at the end of the episode to Zelina Vega's heel faction stealing the show, this week's edition of Monday Night RAW featured several contrasting moments.
As WWE switched back to live content, viewers witnessed an action-packed episode from the Red brand this week. However, the action-heavy show did lead to monotony in front of an empty audience.
WWE episodes usually show a dip in interest after their yearly WrestleMania event. But with a global pandemic at hand in 2020, the company might have to pull something extraordinary to keep the viewers hooked during this period.
Here are the five biggest news stories from this week's episode of WWE RAW (April 13, 2020).
#5: Shayna Baszler "injured" Sarah Logan to look like the most dominant female athlete in WWE right now
The first set of qualifying matches for the Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match took place on RAW this week.
Shayna Baszler faced Sarah Logan in a very one-sided contest.
Baszler is one of the top favorites to win the MITB briefcase this year. It looks like Shayna is out for revenge after Becky Lynch pulled off a victory against her at this year's WrestleMania Pay-Per-View.
The Queen of Spades beat Logan relentlessly and stomped on her arm in a vicious way. Logan couldn't continue, and this led to the ref calling off the match. The announcer botched by declaring Sarah Logan as the winner of the bout, but the commentary team was quick to rectify that Shayna Baszler was the one who emerged as the victor here.
Ignoring the announcer's botch in this case, the main purpose of this match was to make Shayna look like the most dangerous woman on the roster. That objective was certainly accomplished last night.
#4: Asuka and Nia Jax won their respective matches to qualify for the Women's MITB Ladder Match
Last week, Nia Jax returned to the Red brand, ending a year-long absence dating back to last year’s WrestleMania.
Nia Jax faced Kairi Sane for the Women's MITB qualifying matchup this week.
It was apparent that Jax would easily dominate one-half of The Kabuki Warriors. That is exactly what happened, and unfortunately, Kairi didn't have the same luck as her teammate, Asuka, on this week's show.
Asuka faced Ruby Riott at the beginning of the episode. Both women put on the most competitive bout out of all three Women's MITB qualifying matches last night.
Asuka's career has been on an upswing since the year began. Her wonky onscreen antics have earned a special place on a show with no live audience. Asuka's flashy presence inside and outside the ring makes up for the silence that could be felt throughout several parts of the show.
The Empress of Tomorrow may have defeated Ruby Riott, but this was an especially good performance from the former leader of The Riott Squad.
#3: Zelina Vega's heel faction's presence could be felt throughout the episode
Austin Theory, Angel Garza & Andrade are all Zelina Vega's associates who banded together against numerous challenges on Monday Night RAW this week.
The current United States Champion, Andrade, has past history with Drew McIntyre during their days in NXT. Both men faced each other in a Champion versus Champion main event, but Vega's associates did a whole lot more before the main event itself.
Austin Theory defeated Akira Tozawa last night. Austin also has a MITB qualifying match against Aleister Black next week, which is an odd situation since we all know that Vega is married to Black in real life.
Later, Angel Garza faced Tehuti Miles in singles competition. Garza was successful in picking up the victory as well. The trio attacked both Tozawa and Miles to establish their dominance this week.
Vega's heel faction was persistently featured on last night's episode, and under current restrictions, they could be an integral part of Monday Night RAW throughout future WWE programming as well.
#2: Ricochet & Cedric Alexander pushed The Viking Raiders to their limit in tag-team competition
Last week, Ricochet & Cedric Alexander teamed up against Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan (NXT, NXT UK, 205 Live mainstays) to pick up an impressive victory on the RAW after WrestleMania 36 episode.
Several viewers could feel that both Alexander and Ricochet have amazing chemistry as a tag team. WWE pursued this idea this week as well.
The Viking Raiders returned on RAW and faced Alexander and Ricochet. The rising team should have picked up the victory here, but The Viking Raiders reigned supreme last night.
Erik and Ivar have already established themselves as a dominant tag team in WWE, and as unique as they are together, a Street Profits versus Cedric/Ricochet program sounds more interesting than a feud where The Viking Raiders are pitted against the current RAW Tag Team Champions at this stage.
But it is understandable why WWE won't push Cedric and Ricochet so early. However, it is only a matter of time till Cedric and Ricochet get an opportunity to face the RAW Tag Team Champions.
#1: Seth Rollins ignited a feud against Drew McIntyre after the main event
Throughout the night, Seth Rollins was featured in a series of short, ominous promos after his loss to Kevin Owens at WrestleMania 36.
Apparently, The Monday Night Messiah felt like a different person after facing his "crucifixion" at the hands of The Prizefighter.
Simultaneously, the night was building towards a Champion versus Champion main event between Drew McIntyre and Andrade.
The WWE Champion reigned supreme over the threat of Zelina Vega's associates, but the biggest takeaway occurred when Seth Rollins arrived and attacked Drew McIntyre to send a message to the viewers.
This was a bittersweet night for McIntyre, who finally got revenge against Andrade for what the latter did to him in NXT. However, it looks like Rollins just got pushed to the WWE Title scenario despite losing to Kevin Owens at WrestleMania.
But then again, Rollins can add a level of legitimacy to McIntyre's reign like no other Superstar. The Monday Night Messiah has also defeated Brock Lesnar in the past, and while that is not enough to guarantee an immediate title shot, Rollins has reached a point where a loss wouldn't affect his momentum to a large extent.
