'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
From mysterious blackouts to Shane McMahon's "RAW Underground", this week's edition of WWE RAW featured many contrasting moments.
I have to say, that WWE's drastic decision to make RAW appear like a completely different show may not be everyone's cup of tea. I loved this change in presentation from a subjective standpoint, even though there's no telling how long the company will stick with it.
Each and every segment blended into the next one through a recurring series of plot threads, and the road to this year's SummerSlam may just be the strangest one we have seen in a while.
Let us know what you thought about this particular episode in the comments section below.
Here are the five biggest news stories from this week's episode of WWE RAW (August 3, 2020).
#5: A group of miscreants caused a power outage as Apollo Crews retained his U.S. Title
As WWE reported on their website before this week's RAW, a new faction was supposed to debut during the episode.
What nobody expected was the fashion in which this unlawful group of people would affect the entire night's proceedings. WWE RAW suffered blackouts and technical difficulties during several instances, and it became an important plot thread when Apollo Crews retained his U.S. Title against MVP to kick-off this episode.
The flickering lights and "unsafe conditions" were MVP's excuses for the loss, and the United States Championship wasn't the only gold his faction lost last night.
Shelton Benjamin's 24/7 title went missing, and before you know it, R-Truth, Akira Tozawa, and Benjamin are fighting over it inside a WWE ring.
Tozawa eventually became the new 24/7 champion, and it will be interesting to see how The Hurt Business moves forward from this very strange episode of WWE RAW.
Meanwhile, the mysterious faction's idea is interesting enough to reel viewers in for next week's episode.
#4: Nia Jax got suspended for striking an official whom she struck again this week
There were so many bizarre things that happened on this week's episode of WWE RAW, that it became hard for me just to pick out 5 top news stories from last night's show.
During any other normal week, Kevin Owens re-uniting two members of The Riott Squad (Liv Morgan, Ruby Riott) would have been an interesting thing to talk about, but it's just not nearly as strange as what Nia Jax did on last night's episode of WWE RAW.
Jax struck WWE official Pat Buck previously, and Buck expected an apology from her this week. As expected, Nia Jax didn't apologize and challenged Buck to an inter-gender match instead. Instead, she got herself suspended without pay as a result. Enraged over this outcome, Jax headbutted the same WWE official and kicked him in the ribs.
Maybe this was booked to take Nia Jax out of Shayna Baszler and Asuka's feud with The Golden Role Models (Sasha Banks, Bayley).
But as a singular segment, this was unnecessarily strange amidst all the unusual moments from this week's RAW.
#3: Samoa Joe teased an in-ring comeback as Seth Rollins and Dominik Mysterio's SummerSlam match was confirmed
Seth Rollins and Rey Mysterio's feud had to move on at some point, and WWE fans had been waiting for the company to pull the trigger on Dominik Mysterio's in-ring debut.
Both of these ideas were executed on this week's WWE RAW. It all began when Seth Rollins called out Tom Phillips for encouraging Dominik's attack on Rollins with a kendo stick.
When it became apparent that Rollins & Murphy were about to hurt Phillips, Samoa Joe stepped in and assured that won't be happening anytime soon. Joe's work as a color commentator has been good, but his intensity on last night's episode of RAW reminded everyone of the Samoan Submission Machine.
Just when Samoa Joe was about to step into the ring against Rollins & Murphy, Dominik returned with a kendo stick and beat up The Monday Night Messiah again.
Dominik stood defiant in the middle of the ring, as Seth Rollins retreated and accepted to face Rey Mysterio's son at SummerSlam. The set-up to Rollins accepting the challenge was booked well, and it was legitimately a well-done segment in a night filled with some bizarre moments.
#2: Drew McIntyre owned Randy Orton in a promo masterclass this week
Just like Edge and Randy Orton's feud comprised of passionate segments, it seems like the company has continued the tradition as Orton gears up to face the WWE Champion at SummerSlam.
From McIntyre's perspective, both himself and Orton were dubbed as the "chosen ones" by Vince McMahon at different points in WWE history.
Also, both of them did make a lot of mistakes despite having McMahon's seal of approval. The only difference in McIntyre's point of view is that he was released from the company after making those mistakes, while Orton was given several chances and also had the backing of several WWE legends.
McIntyre didn't have a faction like the Evolution to rely on, and in his opinion, Randy Orton's character is the sort of person who takes a lot out of this industry, and never gives back to it when the time is right.
These points alone were enough for McIntyre to dominate The Viper in a war of words this week. Meanwhile, Kevin Owens has sort of become the figure who is giving advice to up-and-coming talent, and Ric Flair had a problem with it.
Because of this stark contrast on last night's RAW, both Owens and Orton will face each other in the ring next week.
#1: The Hurt Business redeemed themselves in Shane McMahon's "RAW Underground" club
Aside from the fact that Montez Ford was poisoned this week, one of the biggest news stories happens to be WWE's version of David Fincher's neo-noir masterpiece, Fight Club.
From a subjective standpoint, I was entertained with this idea, and the background music, as well as Shane McMahon's idea of making it appear like an exclusive club, was interesting and unusual, to say the least.
But from an objective standpoint, the production team's approach to making it look like a sleek and well-produced segment works against the gritty vibe that people get from an underground fight club.
Even though The Hurt Business lost all their WWE titles this week, the trio redeemed themselves by beating everyone at the end of this episode.
As a fan, I am quite glad that this happened. There is certainly room for improvement, but the very idea of RAW Underground sounds potentially exciting, and if done right, it'll certainly give WWE a new direction so that they can pull themselves away from this viewership slump.
