Best and Worst of WWE RAW (4th March 2019): Shield reunite, unexpected heel turn

Our regular Best and Worst columnist, Riju Dasgupta, is out and about with the WWE Superstars in India, getting you some major scoops, so I'll be subbing in for him for RAW's Best and Worst!

I'll have to admit, the WWE RAW show this week didn't live up to expectations, and was a damp squib for a go-home show of a PPV. But, perhaps, I expected a show like last week where there were a lot of surprises, which can't be done every week.

Fastlane, the final PPV before WrestleMania 35, will air this week, and on RAW, we had WWE teasing feuds that will set up matches for WrestleMania, as well as Fastlane.

So, let's take a look at the Best and Worst of this week's WWE RAW:

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#1 Best: The Shield

The band is back together! #TheShield stands tall on #RAW!@WWERomanReigns @WWERollins @TheDeanAmbrose pic.twitter.com/ijUfrRYeK6

— WWE (@WWE) March 5, 2019

Roman Reigns once again kicked off RAW this week, following last week's happy announcement about his cancer being in remission. This week, Reigns brought out Seth Rollins, and asked him if he wanted to bring The Shield back together.

The Architect was apprehensive at first, but then agreed to Reigns' idea, but their plans were thwarted when Ambrose was attacked with a guitar by Elias. The two were then seen backstage, speaking to Ambrose (who was lurking in the backstage areas) and trying to convince him about the idea.

Later in the night, Ambrose faced Elias in a singles match, and after the latter prevailed over Ambrose, Rollins and Reigns once again returned to the ring to try to convince Ambrose, who walked away through the crowd.

McIntyre, Lashley, and Corbin attacked Rollins and Reigns, which was the perfect set-up for Ambrose to return to this time save his Shield buddies, and reform the group.

Although it was expected, this made for great television as the trio are still much-loved as a group. The Shield will face off against McIntyre, Lashley, and Corbin in a tag team match at this week's Fastlane PPV, which will probably be the last PPV that they team together before Ambrose leaves WWE in April.

#1 Worst: Same old six-man tag matches

Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley, Baron Corbin, and Elias' heel faction on RAW has the right ingredients for any dominant faction, but WWE have used the foursome terribly over the last few weeks.

McIntyre seemed to have a rocket strapped on him in the second half of last year, with many predicting him to become world champion in 2019, but his push has slowed down considerably. The same can be said about Braun Strowman, too, who, along with Kurt Angle and Finn Balor, faced McIntyre, Lashley, and Corbin in a six-man match.

It seems that WWE has run out of ideas for these supremely talented men as we've seen these six-man matches quite a few times on RAW.

This feud is going nowhere as nothing is at stake at the moment (it was different when the RAW GM position mattered for Corbin). WWE needs to end this feud or at least put something on the line for fans to invest in this feud.

#2 Best: Triple H's very passionate promo

We don't see much of Triple H, the wrestler, on WWE television, but when he does he shows us exactly why he's one of the greats of the business!

The Game reacted to Batista's attack on Ric Flair last week, as well as the message that Batista delivered ahead of RAW this past week.

Triple H's promo was filled with emotion and anger - speaking about his friendship with Ric Flair, about his times on the road with The Nature Boy, as well as the good and bad times that they've spent together over the years, including how deeply he was affected by Flair's health scares last year.

Triple H even went non-PG by telling Batista to “have some balls and show up", which added greatly to his promo.

#2 Worst: Pointless tag team Gauntlet match

Can #HeavyMachinery run the Gauntlet? Or will @ZackRyder & @TheCurtHawkins FINALLY snap their losing streak? #RAW @otiswwe @tuckerwwe pic.twitter.com/VPiaIgMDQX

— WWE (@WWE) March 5, 2019

Heavy Machinery, who were brought up to the main roster a few months ago, seem like a team that will most likely be a tag team that is fodder for other tag teams as they are set to fail right from the start by the WWE.

Otis Dozovic seems to take center stage over his tag team partner, Tucker Knight, with WWE going down the fat-shaming route to get a few laughs. This week on RAW, they faced Ascension, the B-Team, and Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins, in a Gauntlet match that they won.

While I understand that this match was a way to give the eight men some TV time, it was a pointless match that came out of the blue and will perhaps not lead anywhere.

Meanwhile, another NXT Superstar called up to the main roster, EC3, was on WWE's Main Event show, and briefly made an appearance when he was looking at himself in the mirror. EC3 is a talented star who should get more time on RAW, and WWE could have booked him for a match instead of this Gauntlet match.

#3 Best: Ronda Rousey's promo and heel turn

Stephanie McMahon announced this week on RAW that Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair will compete in a singles match at this weekend's Fastlane PPV. Stephanie said that Ronda Rousey had relinquished her RAW Women's title and hence booked a match between Lynch and Flair to decide the new title holders.

But before Lynch and Flair could sign the contract, an angry Ronda Rousey made her way to the ring, and said that she did not relinquish her title and that she had only given Stephanie a week to make up her mind about Rousey's WrestleMania 35 opponent.

Rousey cut a mean promo, dare I say, one of her best in the WWE so far, and eventually turned heel, attacking Lynch and putting her in an armbar. Rousey's heel turn could make things very interesting, and perhaps is an indication that Lynch will win the title at WrestleMania 35.

Lynch and Rousey had gone at each other on social media this past week, and Rousey promised to inflict pain on Lynch, which she did.

We will have to wait till Sunday to see who Rousey will face at WrestleMania; if Lynch wins she will be added to the Ronda Rousey vs Charlotte Flair match at WrestleMania 35.

#3 Worst: Cringey segments with SNL hosts

Colin Jost and Michael Che with Braun Strowman

SNL hosts Michael Che and Colin Jost were on WWE RAW this week as Stephanie McMahon announced that the two comedians will be guest correspondents at WrestleMania 35.

The segments involving them, this past week on RAW, seemed a little too scripted and were cringey. Saturday Night Live is a popular show in the USA, but may not be household names around the world, which may not be a good idea for a global brand like WWE.

For a mega event like WrestleMania, wouldn't it better if WWE brought back one of their many iconic Superstars to be "guest correspondents"? I mean, a lot of them became hugely popular mainly because of their incredible skills on the mic. Who wouldn't want to see Stone Cold Steve Austin interviewing The Miz or Kevin Owens backstage at WrestleMania?

In keeping with the tradition, let's end with a photo of the Queen herself...

Bow down to the Queen!

What did you think of RAW? Leave your comments below!