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From The Big Show and Randy Orton facing off against each other to Edge's fantastic promo, this week's edition of WWE RAW featured many contrasting moments.
It's obvious now that Monday Night RAW feels like a completely different show under Bruce Prichard's creative leadership. The Red brand put on a jam-packed episode this week and even if some of it may have been a little overwhelming, RAW has been a newsworthy affair for two consecutive weeks.
This particular episode succeeded in creating new feuds, and it should be interesting to see how WWE RAW develops along the way for the next few months.
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 (June 22, 2020).
#5: Asuka finally defeated Charlotte Flair as RAW Women's Champion
Say what you want about The Queen of the Women's Divison, but she has been one of WWE's biggest assets in recent memory.
Charlotte Flair got a title opportunity against Asuka this week, and Nia Jax wasn't particularly happy about that. Jax thinks she's still owed another title match since her latest encounters with Asuka haven't been definitive inside the squared circle.
Jax and Charlotte were involved in a scuffle in the early moments of this episode, and it cost Charlotte later on in the night, where a compromised shoulder (thanks to Nia Jax) led to Asuka picking up a victory against The Queen.
Nia Jax attacked Charlotte Flair again backstage, and if this week's WWE RAW was any indication, then it looks like both of them are going to be embroiled in a feud very soon. It will be interesting to see who prevails as the dominant woman here because both Charlotte and Nia Jax are known to be the favorites going into any match.
#4: Sasha Banks swerved everyone by challenging for Asuka's title instead of Bayley's SmackDown Women's Championship
Bayley and Sasha Banks defended their Women's Tag Team titles against The IIconics (Billie Kay & Peyton Royce) on this week's edition of WWE RAW.
I have to say that the Women's Tag Team belts have gotten more coverage and exposure since Sasha & Bayley won those titles. After The Role Models defeated their opponents last night, Sasha teased a scenario where she wanted to become a double Champion like her best friend, Bayley.
Any ardent WWE fan knows that Sasha & Bayley's partnership has been on the verge of breaking down for months, but somehow, they manage to stay together at the end of the day.
Sasha hinted as if she wanted to challenge Bayley for the SmackDown Women's title, but instead, The Boss called out Asuka for a RAW Women's title match at Extreme Rules. Asuka accepted the challenge, but she ended up on the receiving end of a beating at the hands of The Role Models.
Finally, Sasha Banks has entered the main title scene again, and this was a good decision made by WWE when you consider all factors at play here.
#3: Dolph Ziggler returned and challenged WWE Champion Drew McIntyre for Extreme Rules
Since AJ Styles was traded to WWE SmackDown, Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode officially moved to RAW by following their fair trade agreement.
Just like Styles, Ziggler was quick to aim for a newsworthy challenge on his new turf.
We all know that Ziggler and Drew McIntyre have a detailed history that dates back to a period when McIntyre returned to WWE RAW a few years ago.
In The ShowOff's eyes, McIntyre owes him a debt. After all, Ziggler feels that he is personally responsible for McIntyre's success. But The Scottish Psychopath has evolved as a better star since then, so it looks like both of them will be facing each other in a WWE title match at Extreme Rules.
McIntyre has been booked as a strong Champion after he defeated Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 36, and even though Seth Rollins and Bobby Lashley were worthy opponents for him, I don't know how Dolph Ziggler can come across as a believable WWE Champion in 2020.
#2: Seth Rollins almost "sacrificed" Dominik as Rey Mysterio returned to WWE RAW
Rey Mysterio and Seth Rollins' feud has become one of the most heated rivalries on WWE RAW.
After Mysterio's son, Dominik, evaded a 3-on-1 situation last week that involved Rollins and his goons, the legendary luchador returned on WWE RAW last night, and this time, with Dominik by his side.
Despite being worried and angry at his son for entering such a dangerous situation, Mysterio wanted to pay back this favor by beating up The Monday Night Messiah as soon as possible. The situation quickly escalated in a huge brawl that not only involved Rollins and his crew (Austin Theory & Murphy), but Aleister Black and Humberto Carrillo also aided Mysterio to ensure that another one of Rollins' "sacrifices" don't happen on this show.
Dominik was very close to suffering the same fate as his father, but the entire fiasco ended in a stalemate.
Although this feud has been quite entertaining, characters like Aleister Black have suffered in the process. Yes, he gets to be on WWE TV every week thanks to this rivalry, but Black has deviated from his dark and brooding presence which made him such an interesting character back in NXT.
#1: Edge brought back his Rated-R persona through a fantastic promo
Before Edge returned as a PG-version of himself to write his own ending, WWE fans knew him as The Rated-R Superstar for a long period of time, and that version of Edge crossed boundaries several times.
"The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever" brought out Edge's Rated-R persona, since Randy Orton took him to the limit and still chose the low road to secure a victory. After The Viper decimated Christian on last week's WWE RAW, Edge cut an intense promo this week, and he promised to take Orton down by any means necessary.
Meanwhile, The Big Show had a few words for Randy Orton. He wanted to avenge what The Viper did to Christian and Edge, and Big Show didn't mind to hurt Orton even though Edge has something far worse in store for his rival.
As expected, Orton retreated when Big Show challenged him to a fight on the spot, but it looks like WWE's resident giant will be facing Orton sometime soon, perhaps to cover the time it takes for Edge's injury to heal.
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