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WWE RAW after TLC had its fair share of hits and misses. We saw two Superstars – Angel Garza and Alexa Bliss – make their return on the show. Additionally, Charlotte Flair and Asuka played their cards well to establish themselves as dominant tag team champions on the Red brand. Overall, it was an interesting show that teased the beginning of multiple new storylines.
In this article, we will take a look at WWE Superstars who impressed us on RAW and those who didn’t. So, without further ado, let’s begin.
#1 Impressed on WWE RAW: Sheamus
Over the last few weeks, we have seen Sheamus and Drew McIntyre come quite close in WWE due to the long-standing history between the two Superstars. However, the narration has simultaneously made it clear that Sheamus has always betrayed his friends and could do that again. In fact, we even saw him engage in a backstage brawl. However, that turned out to be a friendly spat between two friends.
This week on WWE RAW, Sheamus teamed up with Drew McIntrye and Keith Lee to take on AJ Styles, Miz, and John Morrison in a six-man tag team Holiday Street Fight. Earlier in the show, Miz invited Styles to his talk show and both Superstars blamed each other for not winning the WWE Championship at TLC on Sunday. Soon their chit-chat was interrupted by McIntyre who brought Lee and Sheamus along with him.
Immediately after that all the six Superstars started brawling during which Lee accidentally ended up hitting Sheamus. The latter was angry and wouldn’t let the matter rest even when they were backstage. McIntyre had to interfere between both the Superstars and tried to keep them on the same page until the match. Finally, all the above-mentioned Superstars locked horns in a highly-entertaining match that accounted for the main event of WWE RAW.
Sheamus emerged as one of the best performers in a match that featured the likes of McIntyre and Styles. He was dominant inside the ring and even ended up taking a lot of punishment. Overall, the manner in which he carried the ongoing narration about his conflicting character inside the ring earned him a spot at the top of our list today.
In the end, there was a spot when Sheamus tagged himself in when McIntyre was inside the ring. Lee also did the same thing and then pinned Miz to win the match for his team. When the three Superstars were celebrating, Sheamus hit Lee with a Brogue kick and got into an argument with McIntyre as the screen faded to black. It appears that we could soon see him go after McIntyre and his WWE Championship and hopefully, we will see this feud turn into something compelling ahead of Royal Rumble 2021.
#1 Flopped on WWE RAW: Ricochet
On WWE RAW this week, Ricochet locked horns with T-Bar. RETRIBUTION were adamant on showing The Resident Superhero of WWE what he is missing. Mustafa Ali told Ricochet that unless the latter joins his faction, he will be punished on WWE RAW. Unfortunately, that was the case once again this week.
T-Bar ended up beating Ricochet in a quick in-ring encounter with a few minutes to exert his dominance. The match ended up making Ricochet look extremely weak inside the ring. He no longer appears to be a Superstar who denies being a part of a self-proclaimed vigilante group. Instead, he now looks to be a poor, struggling man fighting against losing odds.
What makes the storyline even less appealing is the fact that RETRIBUTION still wants to recruit a WWE Superstar who loses against them every week. In reality, this feud is not doing anything good for either of the two parties involved. The only way this could get interesting is if someone like Keith Lee helps Ricochet against RETRIBUTION on WWE RAW.
#2 Impressed on WWE RAW: AJ Styles
After losing his chance to win the WWE Championship at TLC 2020, AJ Styles once again took the fight to Drew McIntyre during the main event of RAW this week. We saw that these two Superstars still have some unfinished business between them. During the match, we also saw Styles take a kendo stick and attack McIntyre before the latter retaliated.
There are no doubts about AJ Styles’ in-ring prowess, and he can always be trusted to make any storyline interesting. Tonight’s match showed that Styles would probably remain in the title picture for a while before McIntyre finds his next big feud. It would make sense to keep someone as charismatic as AJ Styles in the world title picture while WWE RAW is struggling for viewership.
In the coming weeks, we can see Styles feud with the likes of Sheamus and Keith Lee as well. He can also get involved in a rivalry with Miz as the latter’s MITB cash-in interrupted The Phenomenal One’s flow at the pay-per-view last Sunday. It will indeed be interesting to see what WWE have in store for Styles on the Red brand.
#2 Flopped on WWE RAW: Drew Gulak
Drew Gulak is an extremely talented Superstar, and it is borderline criminal to not explore his complete potential in WWE. When the creative decided to not have Gulak run around and chase the 24/7 Championship, they put him in a match against Angel Garza. The latter returned on the show tonight and picked a huge victory in a short match.
While this may have seemed good for Garza, it had an adverse effect on Gulak’s credibility in WWE. Even if he was meant to put his opponent over with the WWE Universe, he could have done that without being booked in such weak light. Currently, WWE RAW needs their best performers to step up and deliver an entertaining show.
It would be a mistake to misuse someone like Gulak, especially in this hour of need. Instead, he can be used in a better manner so that the fans actually have a reason to cheer for emerging Superstars. It might seem impossible at this moment, but hopefully, Gulak will be allowed an opportunity to redeem himself in WWE.
#3 Impressed on WWE RAW: Riddle
Tonight, on WWE RAW, Riddle teamed up with Jeff Hardy to interrupt The Hurt Business’ celebration. It led to a match between Riddle and Hardy and the team of MVP and Bobby Lashley. This bout was quite interesting, and Riddle looked at his best inside the ring. Despite the fact that Hardy and Riddle lost this match, the latter’s performance was acknowledged by several viewers on social media.
Riddle has been involved in verbal spats with MVP for a long time. We even saw him engage in a couple of battles with Bobby Lashley. To see him find his opportunity to dominate both these Superstars inside the ring was highly impressive. In addition to that, he was great as a tag team partner for Jeff Hardy.
It is evident that Riddle and Hardy will eventually challenge Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander for the RAW Tag Team Championships. We can also see Riddle challenge Bobby Lashley for the United States title in the future. The only complain, however, is his gimmick which is pushing him further away from his authentic ‘bro’ character with each passing week in WWE.
