Best and worst of RAW before WWE Stomping Grounds- Superstar buried, Seth Rollins gets attacked

I have often complained that despite the fact that there's nothing in the world that beats getting paid to watch wrestling, sometimes WWE does not make it easy. RAW and SmackDown Live sometimes put on episodes that are a chore to sit through and review for you lovely people.

And you also know that it's just them being lazy. Because this week's episode of WWE RAW was a delightful experience. When WWE decides that they want to go all out, they do so.

One wonders if they were waiting for NBA season to end before they kicked things back into high gear again. This week just felt like a breath of fresh air as compared to most others.

And therefore, it is with a smile on my face that I bring you the best and worst of WWE RAW.

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#1 Best: Gallows and Anderson get some screen time

Gallows and Anderson came to WWE with a lot of momentum. Once upon a time, they had the whole 'Beat Up John Cena' thing going for them, and it was quite a feud. But then, they were separated from AJ Styles and truth be told, they've only been a shadow of their former selves since that day.

It was great to see AJ Styles back in the mix again, telling Gallows and Anderson that they had grown complacent and that he wanted to see them dominate the roster like they dominated Japan. Even though Gallows and Anderson lost to The Usos this week, it was great to see that they got some screen time. The storyline with them is certainly far from over.

One wonders if AJ Styles is pulling strings backstage. Maybe he wants his friends to get a lot of screen time.

#1 Worst: The burial of EC3

Speaking of getting TV time, EC3 is one of those performers who should be high up in the pecking order, as one of the top stars in WWE. Instead, he came out as a referee this week, if only for moments before Seth Rollins beat him down with a chair.

I don't even want to go into what Seth Rollins did to Eric Young because it's certain that WWE sees him in a certain light, at this moment. I'm just surprised that EC3, who's exactly the kind of wrestler that WWE likes is being meted with such shoddy treatment.

Maybe this is the ceiling for EC3 in WWE. Maybe there is something about him that rubs Vince McMahon the wrong way.

Whatever the case may be, I'm sure that this is not what EC3 had in mind when he came to WWE this time around.

#2 Best: Ricochet is the Number 1 contender

Samoa Joe became United States Champion when Rey Mysterio relinquished the United States Championship owing to an injury. I thought that RAW kicked off on the right note, not with a long drawn-out segment but with a great match. 5 men battled it out in an elimination contest, that had us on the edge of our seats.

The match did not go long, and Ricochet came out on top. He is your Number 1 contender for the United States Championship, and I'm guessing that this is probably the biggest match of his career so far. I'm sure that the two men will tear it up at WWE Stomping Grounds.

With all due respect to Cesaro, Braun Strowman, The Miz, and Bobby Lashley, I was rooting for Ricochet to win the match. This feud feels fresh and everything else could have potentially been underwhelming.

#2 Worst: Paul Heyman's solo promos

I may be alone in this assessment because from the looks of it...a lot of people online love Paul Heyman's promos. But I feel that they attain a degree of sameness week after week, to the point where they become a drag to sit through. And even if you notice the crowd response, it's not as loud as it once used to be.

I would love to see Paul Heyman mix up his promos to a certain degree. Maybe have him engage in a war of words with Seth Rollins or Kofi Kingston. Maybe have someone else interrupt his promo and set up a potential feud with Brock Lesnar, down the line.

I just think that Paul Heyman's promos, while great in delivery, have attained a great degree of monotony. I can foresee a day when the audience begins to boo him, which is not a prediction, but indeed, a spoiler.

#3 Best: The Firefly Fun House

I have reason to believe that we just witnessed the final episode of the Firefly Fun House on this week's show. You can read my assessment here.

This week's episode of the Firefly Fun House brought it all home and segued from the fun and games beautifully to the dark and demented fringes of Bray Wyatt's mind. It was a wonderful teaser of what we can expect at Stomping Grounds or the RAW after when Bray Wyatt makes his return.

In fact, there was a particular portion of this video when worms were displayed. This was a jab that Wyatt took at his match against Randy Orton at WrestleMania where the two men were subject to a projection of worms upon the ring.

If this is the last episode of the Firefly Fun House, I will miss the twisted genius of Bray Wyatt in the episodes to follow.

#3 Worst: Lacey Evans

Something about the Lacey Evans and Becky Lynch feud is not clicking and I think it sours the mood of RAW altogether. Maybe it's the fact that they have no verbal chemistry with one another or the fact that it's dragged on for too long.

I'd really love to see Becky Lynch take on Beth Phoenix in a match just like she's been teasing on social media. I want her to move on from Lacey Evans because this feud isn't going anywhere at all.

And it's a shame that WWE continues to book the very same segment week after week, where the women exchange weak insults back and forth, with the crowd not reacting. Becky Lynch comes into the arena to a roar of cheers but by the end of the segment, the noise subsides.

It's not even Lacey Evans' fault, because she was great in NXT.

#4 Best/worst: Not announcing the referee

When the whole thread of your show is that there will be a special guest referee named by the end, and the show fails to deliver on this front, I wonder if it's a wise call. Honestly, I'm intrigued to tune in to WWE Stomping Grounds and find out who it is. So maybe, it was the right call.

But then again, I wonder if fans will feel cheated that after waiting for 3 hours, they did not get what they were promised by WWE. Also, what do you guys think of Seth Rollins, the top babyface in the company, attacking people with a chair from the back? Isn't that a very heelish move to pull off?

Finally, what do you think of the pairing of Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross? Do you think that they make a good tag team unit, folks?

I like this visual!