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From a one-on-one match between Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross to a bunch of contenders setting their sights on Drew McIntyre's WWE Championship, this week's edition of WWE RAW featured many contrasting moments.
Now that Survivor Series is done with, RAW focused on building up storylines heading into December's TLC pay-per-view. Understandably, most fans may have felt too tired to watch three hours of RAW following a jam-packed Survivor Series weekend, but the Red brand put on a show that felt interesting in certain ways.
Thanks to a few screwy or safe finishes, RAW might have felt like a chore to watch this week. But apart from that, last night's episode included some good in-ring action, along with huge storyline advancements for Bray Wyatt and Alexa Bliss.
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 (November 23, 2020).
#5: Adam Pearce gets headbutted by Braun Strowman; Riddle shines in a good match against Sheamus on WWE RAW
In order to reward the men's RAW team for their clean sweep victory over SmackDown at Survivor Series, Adam Pearce wanted to hear everyone's thoughts on why they should be eligible to challenge Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship.
As expected, every member of Team RAW vouched for themselves, but Braun Strowman got way too intense over the whole situation. He attacked Pearce with a headbutt, and the latter wasn't exactly happy with Strowman's actions in any way.
After Bobby Lashley and Randy Orton also approached Pearce regarding the WWE title scenario, the on-screen official announced three singles matches for last night's episode. The winners of these matches would face each other next week in a triple threat match to determine the number No. 1 contender for the WWE Championship.
The first of the three matches featured Riddle and Sheamus wrestling each other in a back-and-forth match. Riddle won via a pinning combination, which seemed a bit unexpected since WWE had previously teased an angle with Sheamus and McIntyre.
Still, Riddle's mannerisms are a joy to watch. He almost made MVP chuckle in a backstage segment later in the night, and Riddle trying to pitch the idea of a pizza-flavored yogurt to MVP is exactly what his 'high as a kite' persona is expected to do on TV.
#4: It was a bad night for The Hurt Business in the RAW tag team titles scenario as well as for Bobby Lashley's pursuits regarding the WWE Championship
Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin of The Hurt Business laid down a challenge to The New Day for this week's edition of WWE RAW.
The RAW tag team titles were on the line, but Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods retained after an inconclusive count-out finish. MVP proposed that the match should continue. The second time around, a roll-up from Woods caught Benjamin by surprise, and The New Day escaped with their RAW tag team titles.
Two consecutive unsatisfying finishes may have tested the viewers' patience a lot, to be quite honest. Later in the night, Bobby Lashley faced Keith Lee in the second of Adam Pearce's three-match plan to determine the No. 1 contender for the WWE title.
As a match, it was a great clash between two huge competitors on the Red brand. But then again, MVP interfered when things got too heavy to handle on Lashley's part. The All-Mighty got disqualified as a result.
However, both competitors showed what they could do inside the ring when pitted against each other. This indicates that a Keith Lee vs. Bobby Lashley feud for the United States Championship should be the next program for both men if Lee fails to become the No. 1 contender for the WWE title next week.
#3: Lana's 'table streak' was broken on this week's WWE RAW
As a result of Lana's sole survivor status from this year's WWE Survivor Series event, Asuka approached her backstage and offered a RAW Women's Championship match last night.
During Lana and Asuka's match, Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax interrupted to sit near ringside for commentary. The Empress of Tomorrow provoked Jax and Baszler, and it became apparent that Asuka was about to go through the table at the hands of Nia Jax on WWE RAW. However, Lana stood up to her bully and made the save.
This led to a tag team match between the aforementioned competitors, and Lana was able to escape her weekly fate by preventing Nia Jax from putting her through the commentary table.
Asuka used a schoolboy pin on Baszler to pick up a victory for herself and Lana. It's safe to say that luck has turned on Nia Jax since Survivor Series. Now that Asuka and Lana have earned a victory over the WWE Women's Tag Team Champions, they could challenge for those titles sooner rather than later.
For those unaware, the main event of last year's TLC event featured Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair taking on The Kabuki Warriors for the women's tag team titles. Lynch was the RAW Women's Champion at that point in time, and Asuka is the one holding that title this year. WWE may book the same match from TLC 2019 with different competitors this year.
#2: Friendship Frog debuts during Firefly Fun House and gets killed by Alexa Bliss; Bliss manipulates Nikki Cross in a one-on-one match on WWE RAW
Bray Wyatt and Alexa Bliss manage to approach Firefly Fun House with a fresh creative mindset every week, and last night's edition of WWE RAW was no different, with the debut of a puppet named Friendship Frog.
A major theme for Bliss was facing her former best friend, Alexa Bliss, on this week's WWE RAW. For Wyatt, the friendship theme tied into his history with Randy Orton, who betrayed him in the past.
Friendship Frog's demise at the hands of Alexa Bliss symbolized how Bliss and Wyatt's previous friendships ended up being broken in the long run.
Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross wrestled each other on WWE RAW after their brawl last week. It became apparent that the cheerful version of Alexa Bliss wanted to play harmless games with Nikki Cross, which later turned into mind games when Cross decided to get aggressive against her opponent.
Nikki Cross got manipulated by Bliss when the latter put on an act by snapping out of her Firefly Fun House persona, and Cross fell for it right away. Alexa Bliss picked up the victory in the end, and while the concept behind the finish was quite creative, it could have been executed in a slightly better manner.
Still, the overall narrative of Alexa Bliss being a manipulative figure behind her harmless facade was well-done from a character standpoint.
#1: The Fiend never forgets - The alter-ego of Bray Wyatt spooks Randy Orton; AJ Styles defeats Orton in the main event of WWE RAW
Randy Orton fans may have been disappointed that he didn't get to have a long WWE title run, but in return, viewers will get to witness a strange and bizarre creative ride with The Fiend and Orton's rivalry on RAW.
In the main event of this week's WWE RAW, Randy Orton and AJ Styles faced each other to determine the third person who will be a part of the triple threat match next week. Towards the end of the bout, The Fiend popped up behind Orton on two separate occasions, which was well-executed on TV.
The distraction was enough for AJ Styles to capitalize on the opportunity and deliver a Phenomenal Forearm to secure the victory.
Since Drew McIntyre is a babyface, it's likely that Styles will win the triple threat match against Keith Lee and Riddle - both babyfaces - next week, to set up a heel vs. face feud on WWE RAW.
As for Randy Orton and The Fiend, it's time to strap in for a trip to the past as well as a trip to the future, where there will definitely be consequences for Orton in the long run.
