With Roadblock: End of the Line just two weeks away, the red brand developed a number of feuds heading into the PPV, as well as providing fans with some stellar matches. Seth Rollins stood tall to open the show, with his focus beginning to shift onto Triple H, while he continues to take Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho.
Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn revisited their bad blood in a great match that had the Texas fans chanting ‘This is Awesome’. Chris Jericho attempted to capture his first United States Title from Roman Reigns in a strong bout, as his issues with Kevin Owens continued to intensify.
Charlotte goaded her father into thinking she was apologetic, slapping him and decimating his ‘trophy girl’ in Sasha Banks. So, which of these segments (among others) entertained fans the most? Let’s find out, as I analyse and grade each segment from the December 5th episode of WWE Raw.
Seth Rollins Promo, Big Show vs. Seth Rollins:
Grade: 7.5/10
This was a solid promo to open the show, and it was nice to see Rollins turn his attention back to Triple H, after a couple of months of no mention of ‘The Game’, considering Rollins had his hands full with Owens and Jericho.
It was also wise for WWE to revert Rollins to his revenge-seeking character, rather than the comedic persona he has adhered to occasionally in recent months. Hopefully, we will finally see Rollins and Triple H begin their long-awaited rivalry, once ‘The Man’ is done with Chris Jericho, of course.
Kevin Owens was his usual entertaining heel character on the mic, and his attempt to make up with Jericho by making some matches was fun. The announcement that Rollins and Jericho will face off at Roadblock was certainly expected, but their match will not disappoint.
Overall, a solid promo segment that led to the announcement of Rollins vs. Jericho at Roadblock, and (hopefully) the kick-start of the HHH/Rollins feud.
This match itself was nothing special and was too short to be anything better than mediocre. It was nice to see Big Show back, though, and he seems to be in phenomenal shape. He didn’t get to show much off here, but hopefully, he will be back full time to put some younger guys over.
Big Show hitting Owens (who was at ringside) with a chokeslam was a nice way to pop the crowd, and Rollins picked up the count-out victory. Rollins standing tall to close the segment by hitting Owens with a pedigree was a wise choice, as he needs all the momentum he can get, heading into his presumed feud with HHH.
Overall, a mediocre match, but a fun return for Big Show and a solid way to have Rollins stand tall, heading into Roadblock by taking out Jericho’s ‘best friend’.
Jack Gallagher vs. Ariya Daivari and Rich Swann vs. T.J. Perkins:
Grade for both: 7/10
Using a video package to hype Jack Gallagher’s debut was a wise choice from WWE, who often forget the usefulness of a simple video package to introduce a new Superstar. Gallagher looked impressive here, although this was nothing new if you tuned into 205 Live last week. Still, he made a good first impression and picked up a solid win.
Daivari’s attack after the match gives him more depth as compared to someone who just loses and leaves, as he showed a vicious side by taking out Gallagher’s leg. A blowoff match should ensue because of the attack, and that is the perfect scenario for a longer, better match to take place that puts Gallagher over even more.
Hopefully, WWE books it for tomorrow's 205 Live. Overall, a solid segment and win for Gallagher, who impressed on his debut and will further impress in a potential blowoff match with Daivari.
This was a fun Cruiserweight match that enthralled fans for certain sequences. Swann and Perkins are both extremely talented, and it was great to see them impress in this match.
The video package hyping Swann did a splendid job as well, giving fans a reason to invest in him, and giving him the win after his Cruiserweight title victory last week was definitely the right move. Perkins looked good even in a clean loss, and hopefully, he can be utilised better, after suffering from a huge lack of momentum since losing the Cruiserweight title.
Overall, a strong bout that highlighted Swann extremely well, while also providing fans with some solid in-ring action.
Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens:
Grade: 8/10
Considering the insane chemistry these two have, there was no doubt that this match wouldn’t disappoint. Contesting yet another extremely strong matchup, Owens and Zayn stole the show (although that wasn’t very hard on what was a typical episode of Raw).
Owens and Zayn had fans invested, and the in-ring work was splendid. Zayn looked great here, and he was protected in the finish as well, with Owens hitting a lucky Pop-Up Powerbomb out of nowhere, while the former was dominating.
Owens picked up a big win here after weeks of appearing very weak, and it was nice to see Owens emerging victorious for once with no interference. However, this match had no implications or stakes, meaning it was pointless for the build to Roadblock.
Still, another very strong bout between Owens and Zayn, and a solid win for Owens after weeks of poor booking.
Bayley vs. Alicia Fox, Mark Henry vs. Titus O’Neill:
Grade for both: 5/10
This was a glorified squash for Bayley, who can’t seem to escape the same up and down pattern that so many WWE superstars experience. Some weeks she gains momentum by beating Charlotte, others she is squashing irrelevant women in unimpressive matches.
It feels like WWE is treading water with Bayley, waiting around until she challenges Sasha Banks. Until then, WWE needs to come up with better ways to increase her momentum than this. As for Alicia Fox, well, yeah. She is stuck in a love story with Cedric Alexander, rather than being used as an established woman veteran.
Overall, a poor, glorified squash match that kept Bayley stuck in the same pattern of no momentum being gained or lost, but rather remaining stagnant.
This was the definition of a filler segment that only served to pop the crowd for the hometown hero in Henry. Instead of using Henry in a meaningful way, by having him put over younger stars, he is a cheap novelty act, which is a dumb way to use an established veteran.
This segment will contribute nothing to either man, and it doesn’t build towards any potential story. Overall, a terrible filler segment that should be kept off Raw in future.
Roman Reigns vs. Chris Jericho (United States Championship):
Grade: 8.5/10
This was a splendid match that finally shifted some focus on Reigns’ United States title while giving Jericho some motivation to prove that he can beat Reigns without Owens. Reigns continues to wrestle great matches despite his poor alignment and character, and Jericho has always been a top talent in the ring, even at his age.
Reigns and Jericho have strong chemistry as well, and a potential feud between the two soon wouldn’t be unwelcome. The finish was perfect, with Owens attempting to help Jericho, even though Y2J clearly told Owens to stay out of his business. The ‘best friends’ are slowly imploding, and it is a joy to watch.
When the two finally clash and begin feuding, it will be fireworks. Although this arguably did more to build towards Owens vs. Jericho than Reigns vs. Owens, this still added some heat to the Reigns/Owens match as well. Overall, a splendid segment that provided fans with a stellar US title match and the slowly building implosion of JeriKO.
Big Cass vs. Rusev, Enzo Amore Backstage Segments:
Grade: 7.5/10
Even though WWE is PG, this pushed the boundaries slightly, and it was nice to see. Amore was hilarious in the backstage segments, especially the one involving Ric Flair, and Amore’s charisma is incredible in everything he does.
However, Lana continues to be used poorly as eye candy, rather than the empowering Russian manager of Rusev that she once was, even if it all ended up being a trap for Rusev to decimate Enzo. WWE has been wise in limiting the contact between Rusev and Cass, as their first clash will be highly anticipated, after weeks of Rusev destroying Enzo.
Whether it takes place at Roadblock is yet to be seen, but this has been a fun build involving Amore pushing the boundaries. The eventual Cass/Rusev clash will be great, and Amore has been awesome as the clueless charismatic sidekick, getting himself into trouble with Rusev too often.
Rusev looked like a monster in the decimation of Amore as well, which was nice to see after a couple of weeks of floundering. Overall, some fun backstage segments with Amore and a wise build to Cass/Rusev.
Sheamus and Cesaro vs. Gallows and Anderson (Winner Faces New Day on Raw Next Week):
Grade: 6.5/10
This felt like a way of WWE wasting time until New Day break the record for longest-reigning tag team champions, but the action was still solid here. Sheamus and Cesaro being on the same page was a great sight to see, and the Irishman got a big pop from the crowd after a hot tag, showing that the Sheamus/Cesaro storyline has been a success until this point.
Standing tall at the end of the no contest finish, Sheamus and Cesaro, have become one of this writer’s favourite parts of Raw. However, the finish to this match was weak. The New Day continue to act incredibly heelish on their road to breaking Demolition’s record, and whether that is leading to a heel turn is yet to be seen, but for now, it is a lacklustre way to end matches.
A triple threat tag team title match will most likely take place now, and although that will be a strong matchup for next week’s show, it could’ve been achieved in a stronger way than the finish we got. Overall, it was still a fun segment that saw Sheamus and Cesaro flourish, although the New Day are treading water until they break Demolition’s record, and it is affecting matches.
Charlotte’s Apology:
Grade: 8/10
This was a strong way to close the show, although the announcement of yet another Banks vs. Charlotte match with a stipulation for Roadblock, is disappointing.
Rather than giving SmackDown’s women a chance to ‘make history’, or even other Raw women (Bayley, Nia Jax?), WWE continues to focus on only Sasha and Charlotte, tarnishing the historical significance of the entire women’s revolution.
It isn’t a revolution if only two of many women are involved, and yet another stipulation match for Sasha vs. Charlotte was definitely the wrong choice. Still, their Iron Man match at Roadblock is sure to be stellar, and this was a strong segment to build to it.
Considering how long these two have been feuding, the involvement of Ric Flair into the story was a wise choice by WWE to keep it going. Yet another personal element has been added to the Banks/Charlotte rivalry, and their match at Roadblock will definitely benefit from it.
Charlotte was incredible here, proving why she is the best heel on Raw, by degrading her father once again and beating down Banks while taunting Flair. The boos were thunderous from the crowd when the show went off the air, and this significant increase in heel heat for Charlotte will only benefit the electricity of their blowoff bout at Roadblock.
Banks now has a perfect reason for revenge for next week, as the build to their Iron Man match continues, and this is a much better story than ‘making history’. Overall, a strong segment that saw Charlotte prosper as the top heel on Raw, while Banks and Charlotte’s rivalry now has another layer of bad blood to work with for Roadblock.
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