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Whenever this can be said, it must be: WWE Raw was good this week. There were four matches that got over ten minutes (and two over 19 minutes!), Jason Jordan is somehow starting to find his stride on his path to being a heel, and Matt Hardy is finally allowed to be his amazingly weird self.
Even the Cruiserweights earned a "This is awesome" chant, so kudos to them as well. Much of what WWE put on their flagship show was genuinely entertaining and they should be commended for it.
That's the extent of booming positivity for this article because if you've been here before, you know that's not what we're doing here. This is the article that points out the moments of the night that did not go so well.
From the botches like that terrible landing for Sasha Banks off of a sunset flip Powerbomb to the confusing moments such as a Jason Jordan's attack on Samoa Joe for no real reason, this is the countdown that the wrestlers probably hope they don't chart on.
Kicking it off this week is a subtle piece of botchery from the main event.
#5 Cesaro didn't catch the legs
This is one of those slip-ups that makes you question what Dean Ambrose was going for in the first place. Of course, he was diving off of the second ropes in hopes of dropkicking Cesaro but The Swiss Superman caught him in an attempt at a Giant Swing instead.
The problem is that Cesaro didn't initially catch his legs, making it appear as if Dean Ambrose dove off of the ropes hoping to have his legs caught by his opponent. The timing was just off enough on this one to remind the viewer that wrestling is really a show and not actually an athletic competition. For a brief second, they lost that suspension of disbelief.
Samoa Joe later got involved in this match after it was restarted under No DQ rules. His help was important in making sure The Bar retained their titles.
#4 Kurt Angle does not lack dad experience
Booker T is always full of gems from the commentary booth and this night was no different. While Samoa Joe looked on during the opening contest between Roman Reigns and Jason Jordan, he uttered this startling claim about Raw's General Manager...
"Kurt Angle needs to know when to be a GM and when to be a dad - I know he doesn't have a whole lot of experience in that! But sometimes you've got to know how to tell your son SHUT UP when grown folks are talking, man. This is not the time!"
The key accusation in the above diatribe is that Kurt Angle doesn't have a "whole lot of experience" being a father. It may be true that he's a newbie to parenting a 29-year-old adult child, but outside of WWE, he has five non-kayfabe kids. In contrast, Booker T has three kids. Judging solely by sum total, Angle has was more experience being a father than Booker T does.
#3 Don't say bump, Maggle
It's been a little while since one of those lists of banned words for the announcers has made the rounds. Usually, the smarky words like "heel," "babyface," and also "belt" for some reason are prohibited from uttering. It's safe to say that bump is also off limits even though it was heard during the main event.
Seth Rollins gave Sheamus a guillotine leg drop that sent him tumbling to the floor below. Michael Cole described the landing as an "ugly bump," then immediately corrected the word to "fall" instead.
It can only be assumed that Vince McMahon spewed out at least a half dozen expletives into the earpiece of Cole in that incredibly short time it took for him to fix his error.
#2 This attack made no sense
Jason Jordan hasn't been the most reasonable person since jumping to Raw to be with the daddy he never knew he was missing. But even for him, this post-match attack was just baffling.
Jason doesn't like either Samoa Joe or Roman Reigns much at all. You'd think that if they were wailing on each other, Jason would simply let them hurt each other all they wanted.
Joe attacked Roman after his match with Kurt's baby boy, then Jason stopped this assault with a belly to back suplex. The current Intercontinental Champion was none too appreciative of his act of kindness. He repaid Jason with a Superman Punch to lay him out.
If that wasn't enough, Samoa Joe got revenge by laying out Jordan inside Kurt Angle's backstage office shortly after this.
#1 Brutal sunset flip Powerbomb
Easily the nastiest bump of the night, Paige went for a sunset flip Powerbomb on Sasha Banks during their singles match and it did not go well. For starters, Paige didn't get a good grip with both of her hands, so her left hand slipped off of Sasha's leg before she left the turnbuckles. However, the bigger problem here was that Sasha landing viciously on the back of her head and neck. It looked painful for her.
Paige eventually scored the win after her Absolution buddies caused a distraction, setting Banks up for her RamPaige finisher. Absolution continues to steamroll through everyone in this division.
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