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WWE RAW this week just felt fresh, interesting, gripping, and there was an air of something different to the show following the massive viewership numbers that SmackDown received. Maybe the low viewership numbers for WWE RAW recently were a wake-up call, and hopefully, things will be different moving forward.
Even the 'worsts' that are mentioned in this review did not necessarily drag the episode down, because, like Denise states in her Tweet, WWE RAW just flew by quickly. This is not an easy feat for a three-hour-long show, and one has to commend those in the creative team for WWE RAW not being the usual fare.
Feel free to chime in with your 'Bests and Worsts'. At the very outset, let's just say that it was really heartening to see and hear the Brodie Lee tributes from Alexa Bliss, Drew McIntyre, Tom Phillips, and Xavier Woods.
It's fantastic to see just how much he was loved by the entire WWE fraternity.
#1 Best: Perfect setup for either Sheamus or Keith Lee to turn heel, on the Legends Night WWE RAW special
Keith Lee and Sheamus had a brutal opening match on WWE RAW this week, and it was the right decision to put Keith Lee over, to go up against Drew McIntyre next week. One thing is for sure, everyone who thought that he was buried because he was sent to the WWE Performance Center was absolutely dead wrong.
Because a lot more eyes will be on the product on Legends Night, it is all too likely that Keith Lee or Sheamus could turn heel, and embark on a long feud with Drew McIntyre until the 2021 Royal Rumble. Keith Lee turning heel makes more sense, especially if the plan is to have him wrestle Lesnar and McIntyre at WrestleMania next year.
#1 Worst: Why did The Miz lose on WWE RAW, if he was getting the briefcase back later in the night?
It makes sense for Gran Metalik to pick up the biggest victory of his career on WWE RAW if there were no plans for The Miz for a good while. However, if the Creative team knew that he would win the Money in the Bank briefcase later in the night, why would they make him look weak, earlier on WWE RAW?
How can anyone buy into the idea of The Miz as the face of the WWE RAW brand, if he can't even beat Gran Metalik, someone who has not been booked strongly at all, until this week's episode?
Isn't this move basically revealing to the world that no, The Miz will not be successfully cashing in his Money in the Bank contract, for the second time?!
Let's just hope that this big WWE RAW win means a long and prolonged push for Gran Metalik, who is definitely a very underrated and gifted star.
#2 Best: WWE RAW Superstar Alexa Bliss has the best acting chops
The segment at the end of WWE RAW this week was absolutely perfect, and also perfectly terrifying, in its intensity and execution. All of the credit needs to go to Alexa Bliss, who is in a league of her own as an actor on the WWE RAW brand. Sure, Randy Orton played his part as well, but Alexa Bliss pretty much carried the segment with her excellent acting chops on WWE RAW.
The sight of Alexa Bliss dousing herself in gasoline and Randy Orton destroying the Firefly Fun House were both equally gripping in their own right. In fact, the bait of waiting for an Alexa Bliss vs. Randy Orton main event match must have hooked several viewers in. And the cliffhanger at the end of WWE RAW was also done absolutely perfectly.
It was quality television from the WWE RAW creative team, which is not something that we say very often. We are intrigued to find out if the next episode of RAW will show us that Alexa Bliss has been burnt to a crisp.
#2 Worst: Jeff Hardy taps to Bobby Lashley on WWE RAW once again
It's great that The Hurt Business has been made to look like a million bucks on WWE RAW week after week but if they're beating their prospective challengers every single week, who will step up to the next? Riddle, Jeff Hardy, and The New Day came up short against The Hurt Business once again this week on WWE RAW. Can we buy into the idea of any of these men facing Bobby Lashley for the United States Championship then?
And the same argument holds true for the WWE RAW Tag Team Championships also. If Jeff Hardy is tapping so very easily, can we take him and Riddle seriously as contenders? Shouldn't they be working up the ranks, to the Champions?
AEW's ranking system makes a lot more sense in this regard than the haphazard way of making matches on WWE RAW. There is consolation in knowing that the company does believe in Bobby Lashley though. He's looked like an absolute monster.
#3 Best/Worst: Ricochet gets beaten on WWE RAW far too many times
There was a sequence of moves during the WWE RAW match between Ricochet and Mustafa Ali, that could have been a part of an Avengers movie, and still not have seemed too out of place. Ricochet moves in a manner in which human beings shouldn't be able to, and the 'one and only' tag is not just a catchphrase but the truth.
That said, did he need to lose to members of RETRIBUTION in the manner that he has been on WWE RAW, and then lose to the leader of the pack, Mustafa Ali? You could argue that he got the last laugh, with The Recoil, but at the same time, where will this storyline go, following his defeat?
Be sure to check out Dr. Chris Featherstone dissect and break down WWE RAW with former WCW Champion, Vince Russo by clicking on the link above. Also, as always, share your thoughts and views about this week's episode because the space below is for you to share your thoughts with us.
