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In light of declining ratings and lower interest, I had assumed that WWE would come out all guns blazing for the go-home RAW before Money in the Bank. The show had some interesting moments, but they were quite few and far between. The show wasn't even bad. It was just about ordinary.
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RAW came to us from Little Rock, Arkansas. It was the final stop before Money in the Bank. No, it did not really get me excited for the big pay-per-view.
That said, Money in the Bank is usually a good pay-per-view event. You can't go wrong with two big ladder matches.
I present the 'Best and Worst' of this week's episode and invite you to leave a comment in the section below.
#1 Best: The two multi-person matches
This week on RAW, the four men from RAW squared off with one another. As did the four women from RAW. The matches were meaningless of course, and had no bearing on the pay-per-view that will come our way this Sunday. That said, they were a sight to witness, behold and enjoy to the very fullest.
Ember Moon looked especially impressive during the Women's match. Natalya picked up a big win and in my opinion, gained a lot of legitimacy through this contest, considering she's always been more of a background character in the recent past. Also, did you guys see this amazing frog splash from Kevin Owens onto Braun Strowman?
Strowman clearly seems to be the favourite heading into Money in the Bank which makes me believe that it will be someone else that eventually wins the Men's MITB contract. Somehow, Strowman doesn't need a contract unlike the rest of the competitors in the match.
#1 Worst: Everybody on a ladder
RAW began this week with four men and four women atop eight ladders. This has been done in the past and somehow has always seemed hokey. Why would babyfaces and heels stand on ladders, next to each other? It makes for an interesting visual but takes the seriousness out of the contest entirely.
Kevin Owens tried to save the segment with a few jokes but the ridiculousness of the entire thing just did not work for me. It just makes the current product seem more childish than it really needs to be.
#2 Best: Rousey & Jax collide
Ronda Rousey was absolutely mechanical when she manned the commentary booth recently. This week, she really showed a lot more fire than ever. When Nia Jax called her out on not being experienced, Rousey brought up how everyone had doubted her even in the world of unscripted combat.
I loved how Nia Jax brought up the fact that head butts weren't allowed in UFC, and then actually went on to head butt Rousey, knocking her to the ground. I loved Rousey's transition into the arm bar instantaneously. I am actually a little more intrigued about their massive contest now.
#2 Worst: Jonathan Coachman
Somehow, the third guy at the commentary booth never seems to add anything of value. This is true for David Otunga, Percy Watson, Byron Saxton and yes, even Booker T. Jonathan Coachman has joined this elite club of announcers. Did you guys hear him say that John Mayer was a hip hop artist?
He went on to equate John Mayer with Jay Z. It actually became tiresome to listen to Coachman with Cole and Graves correcting him over and over again. Coachman tried to pass it off as a joke on social media, but if it was a joke, Coachman certainly doesn't have the delivery of Bobby Heenan to pull off humour on commentary.
#3 Best: The two streaks
This is a personal opinion. In my estimation a match does not make sense unless there is a story behind it. Unless the competitors have a reason to fight and win. Unless the crowd have a reason to remain invested in what's going on in front of them.
I love Curt Hawkins' losing streak. I loved how he used an underhanded tactic to pick up a win and still managed to fail. I'm an equally big fan of the B-Team and their winning streak as well. Both of the acts are minor sideshows but there's a reason to root for them.
#3 Worst: Roman Reigns vs. Sunil Singh
Jinder Mahal thought of a long-winded plan to get one up on Roman Reigns on RAW. He teased the appearance of The Great Khali, sent in a Singh Brother instead and then attacked Roman Reigns. There had to be a simpler way! This segment was an absolute joke.
I'm glad we didn't have to watch the same match twice in the span of a week. That said, I wasn't necessarily a fan of this particular segment either.
#4 Best/worst: Zayn's obstacle course for Lashley
Thus far, every Zayn vs. Lashley segment has seemed like a trainwreck. The obstacle course segment wasn't all that bad, really. We got to see how much of a beast Lashley is. We also got to see just how sneaky Sami Zayn can be.
I don't think it's enough to save the damage that's been done. Lashley's lost most of the momentum he came in with. Sadly, the same holds true for Zayn too.
All said and done, I do hope WWE can really amp it up over the coming weeks. If not, I wonder how many people will actually stay loyal to the product over time.
Maybe a prayer to The Goddess will help RAW's cause.
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