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If you consider how soon WrestleMania will come our way, this was a pretty shoddy effort from WWE overall. RAW came to us from Chicago, the crowd was great and well behaved too (no CM Punk chants) and the performers gave it their all, I suppose. But the show in itself was unexciting. And some of the 'surprises' we were promised were awful.
I suppose what WWE is trying to do is to not have everyone compete every week, so as to ensure that no injuries happen before WrestleMania 35. But in doing so and keeping top superstars off the program, they've created a scenario where there's no reason to stay tuned. I could have skipped the show and not missed much this week.
Expect the viewership to reflect this. However, if you thought this week's show was great, be sure to leave a comment below.
I can't imagine how anyone would have liked the show, however.
#1 Best: Beth Phoenix comes out of retirement
The Women's Tag Team Championships are historic and all, I get that. But there just hasn't been any excitement in the division since Sasha and Bayley won the titles. I think them going to SmackDown to face the IIconics is great. But their potential WrestleMania match seems like a bigger deal.
Beth Phoenix will soon come out of retirement to reunite the Divas of Doom, to take on Sasha Banks and Bayley, from the looks of it. I think that this is a great move and is the only way really that the WWE Universe will care about the titles.
Both women are still in their prime and can still go. It's also a big step up for Sasha Banks and Bayley, because it allows them to be the workhorses in this match.
Natalya and Beth Phoenix are no pushovers though.
#1 Worst: Angle's final match
I know that we constantly talk about pushing the talent in the roster. But somehow, I assumed that Kurt Angle will go out in a blaze of glory against a fellow legend at WrestleMania 35. The name John Cena was tossed around a few times. It would have been fitting considering John Cena's career started with Kurt Angle.
But when Kurt Angle came out to announce his opponent, all hopes were dashed. Angle will be facing Baron Corbin at WrestleMania. While I mean no disrespect to Baron Corbin, this is not the match that I wanted Kurt Angle to end his career with.
I know that a lot of fellow WWE Universe enthusiasts probably feel the same way that I do. I have listed down a whole bunch of reasons why this match is happening, and I get it, but I don't like it.
How about you guys?
#2 Best: The main event
Is this the best match that Seth Rollins has had in WWE? Not by a very long shot. It's not even the best match that Drew McIntyre has wrestled for the company by a fair margin.
But for what it was, it was a good, solid television match that the crowd actually cared about because of the altercation at the start of the night between the two super athletes. I did not even mind the interference from Brock Lesnar too much, because now Seth Rollins has an incentive to take the feud for the Universal Championship into the next gear at last. As one would expect from McIntyre and Rollins, they worked a decent match.
I also liked the fact that Rollins was separated from The Shield this week. It's good to see that WWE has brought the spotlight back to the Universal Championship once again.
#2 Worst: Finn Balor's mystery partner
Guys, what has happened to Braun Strowman? Not long ago, he was the biggest star in the company and someone who was being pushed as 'the guy'. And now, all of a sudden, he will only be a part of the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania.
But that's not even the worst of it, in my opinion. Finn Balor was supposed to compete against Lashley and Rush, and a mystery partner would be his aide in this quest. Michael Cole kept dropping hints that it was a monstrous individual and many expected the return of The Big Show to television.
Only it was Braun Strowman who came out as Finn Balor's partner on RAW. This is perhaps the worst reveal I've seen in the history of WWE. I would say that the whole Nicholas reveal during WrestleMania last year was significantly better.
#3 Best: Chad Gable vs. Kurt Angle
One glance at Chad Gable and you can tell just how much he has been influenced by Kurt Angle. What a thrill it must have been for Gable to step into the same ring as his hero and be a part of his retirement tour!
Mind you, the match between Gable and Angle on this week's show wasn't the match we'd have had if Kurt Angle were twenty years younger than he is at the moment. But for what it was, it was a dream match on paper and a fairly solid contest in real life.
As one would expect, Kurt Angle won the match and is likely to win all of his match until he gets to WrestleMania 35. I expect him to lose the big one against Baron Corbin at WrestleMania 35.
Can you imagine a world where Kurt Angle isn't actively competing?
#3 Worst: Brock Lesnar's meaningless appearances
Do I have a problem with the WWE Universal Champion appearing on RAW? Of course not.
But I do have a real bone to pick with WWE Creative for literally doing nothing with his appearances at all, honestly. All Brock Lesnar does is show up, smile away as Paul Heyman sells his match and then jump around a few times for fun.
What I especially disliked about this particular appearance is how Brock Lesnar would back away from Seth Rollins as he charged into the ring, full of hellfire and brimstone this week. The last time I checked, Brock Lesnar was still the Beast Incarnate and Seth Rollins was going into the match as the underdog at WrestleMania 35.
I just hope that if Lesnar does show up again before WrestleMania, there is a physical altercation of some sort or maybe even a storyline twist, to shake things up.
#4 Best/worst: Rousey vs. Brooke
This match lasted exactly how long it needed to last. I just kept wondering if I should slot it as a best or worst in my review article. Since I could not arrive at a conclusion, I decided to slot it as both really. Dana Brooke was destroyed by Ronda Rousey, who arrived at the ring with a newfound attitude.
I loved how Ronda Rousey decked security and how her husband got involved in the fracas too. I really wonder where this whole angle is leading. Will he be at her side at WrestleMania and could he help her retain the RAW Women's Championship?
This was not the best episode of RAW but then again, RAW generally become quite awful until WrestleMania comes around, really. I did not mention the Batista promo because that was just weird.
As always, here's a picture of Alexa Bliss to cheer you up!
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