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From Randy Orton accepting Edge's WrestleMania challenge to AJ Styles exposing The Undertaker again last night, this week's edition of Monday Night RAW featured several contrasting moments.
The Red brand put on a pretty straightforward show this week. WrestleMania 36 is just around the corner, and the last thing WWE wants is to become a mundane version of themselves at this stage.
All Elite Wrestling Dynamite proved that empty arena shows can be just as fun as normal Pro-Wrestling episodes, and even though WWE started their cycle of Performance Centre shows to a promising start, one can't help but feel that the episodes have been dipping in quality since then.
Here are the 5 biggest news stories from this week's episode of WWE RAW (March 23, 2020).
#5: Becky Lynch attacked Shayna Baszler in the middle of an in-ring interview
Charly Caruso hosted an in-ring interview with Shayna Baszler during last night's episode of RAW.
Baszler's intensity was fully captured during this segment, thanks to a dark setting that surrounded the ring while Caruso interviewed The Queen of Spades.
Shayna only spoke when she needed too, and Caruso did a great job in making her interviewee look like an intimidating figure. Baszler likes to destroy people. She made it clear that winning the RAW Women's Championship will destroy Becky Lynch, and that is why Baszler cares more about hurting Lynch than the prestige of the title itself.
In the darkness, Lynch attacked her WrestleMania opponent with a Steel Chair from behind.
After a few more chair shots, Lynch walked away confidently, leaving The Queen of Spades vulnerable in the ring.
Leaving the theatrics aside, Lynch isn't a character who attacks her opponents from behind. But with Baszler's dominance in the equation, it made sense why the defiant champion has been wary of her rival so far.
#4: The Street Profits will defend their RAW Tag Team Titles against Andrade and Angel Garza at WrestleMania 36
A huge portion of last night's RAW revolved around a relatively new arc between The Street Profits and the team of Andrade & Angel Garza (w/ Zelina Vega).
Both teams will face each other in a match at this year's WrestleMania event, which is an unusual announcement because the United States Champion's (Andrade) booking has been a little confusing since his return from suspension.
Instead of defending his title at the Grandest Stage of Them All, it feels like Andrade has been relegated to a lower position during his own title reign after losing to Rey Mysterio on last week's episode.
Andrade & Angel Garza defeated Ricochet & Cedric Alexander in a hard-fought battle this week. Andrade & Garza's victory was followed by a relatively shorter match where The Street Profits defeated the team of Shayne Thorne and Brendan Vink from NXT.
It's good that the RAW Tag Team Champions got a longer spotlight just before WrestleMania, but as stated before, their impromptu program with Andrade & Garza seems a bit unusual at the same time.
#3: Seth Rollins cut a brilliant promo against Kevin Owens ahead of their WrestleMania match
When Kevin Owens called out Seth Rollins on last night's episode, one expected The Monday Night Messiah to preach his usual beliefs with AOP and Buddy Murphy by his side.
The Monday Night Messiah gimmick is not the most popular phase of Seth Rollins' WWE career so far, but he showcased a different side to the character this week.
Rollins talked about how NXT stars, as well as future stars in the making, should thank The Monday Night Messiah for their modern-day existence in WWE. Seth Rollins was the first to put NXT on the map as a legitimate aspect of WWE's future.
As a result, even someone like Kevin Owens wouldn't have existed in WWE if it wasn't for Seth Rollins and his contributions to the company in the first place. He even went as far as to take credit for the Women's Evolution that started in the company last decade.
That was how The Monday Night Messiah twisted the facts in his favor before aligning himself to godlike status and leaving Kevin Owens speechless in the ring for the first time in a long time.
#2: Randy Orton accepted Edge's WrestleMania challenge and told his side of the story in a convincing manner
A Randy Orton promo ended last night's episode of RAW.
Previously, Edge claimed that Orton failed to learn the true meaning of "grit" from their mentor, Mick Foley.
The Viper cleared up a few things from his perspective on a shared history with Edge this week. Grit, according to Orton, means something completely different from Edge's definition of the same.
Randy Orton has had a long, sustainable career through which The Viper has been around to see people come and go in this business for more than a decade. But Orton has been that one constant in WWE for years now.
Most stars of his generation can't say the same, because Randy Orton has been always lurking around the locker room as a full-timer even at this stage of his career.
Even though Orton had been handed a relatively easier way of breaking into this industry, the accolades that followed proved how The Viper deserved to be a top star in WWE. Now, Orton is done acting out of love for Edge, and that is why he accepted to fight a returning legend in a Last Man Standing Match at WrestleMania 36.
#1: AJ Styles further exposed The Undertaker and challenged him to a "Boneyard Match" at WrestleMania 36
AJ Styles and The O.C. came out and made fun of The Undertaker and his wife, Michelle McCool for making a video about saving tigers. The concept of saving tigers isn't what prompted Styles to make fun of The Deadman.
Exposing The Undertaker's gimmick has been The Phenomenal One's primary goal, and the video was a perfect opportunity to illustrate how the man behind the myth, Mark Calaway, is just a normal human being after all.
We are at a point where it has become more than apparent that the rumors about a change in The Undertaker's gimmick are inevitable. Styles has gone too far, and the next possible step involved The Phenomenal One challenging The Deadman to a "Boneyard Match" at WrestleMania.
Remember, the contract has already been signed, so this development seems like a recent decision on WWE's part.
While we don't know the exact rules of this unusual stipulation, people have suggested that a "Boneyard Match" may just be a modern-day version of WWE's infamous Buried Alive match.
This stipulation helps in protecting The Undertaker from his in-ring vulnerabilities, and with WrestleMania taking place at the Performance Centre, a match outside the confines of this facility may add a breath of fresh air to the event as a whole.
