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From Alexa Bliss and Asuka's main event match to a spoof segment, this week's edition of WWE RAW featured many contrasting moments.
Whether anyone loved or hated this episode entirely depends upon their subjective taste, as a few experimental segments have led to a divisive conversation on social media. Objectively speaking, Drew McIntyre's absence for a second consecutive week affected the show's momentum. Not every other segment from this episode was well worth one's time, in comparison to the major moments that occurred last night.
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 (January 18, 2021).
#5 Ricochet's Royal Rumble opportunity was crushed by AJ Styles in a good match on WWE RAW
AJ Styles seems to have entered a separate storyline of his own, on the Road to Royal Rumble 2021. Last week, The Phenomenal One defeated Drew Gulak to prevent the latter star from getting an opportunity at the Royal Rumble.
On this week's episode of WWE RAW, Adam Pearce instructed Ricochet that a victory against Styles could get him a huge opportunity at this year's Rumble event.
Ricochet and Styles are two great in-ring athletes by nature, so it was certainly a treat to witness the in-ring showcase between both of them. The ending to their bout included a creative sequence as Ricochet bounced off the ropes right into a Styles Clash from The Phenomenal One.
It seems strange how some WWE Superstars can declare themselves as an entrant in the Royal Rumble match, while an accomplished in-ring athlete like Ricochet has to earn his spot to enter the said match. Will Ricochet's loss from this week's RAW mean that he can't enter the Royal Rumble match, or will The One and Only redeem himself next week?
#4 Lacey Evans came out in Ric Flair's robes to taunt Charlotte Flair on WWE RAW
Lacey Evans and Ric Flair's alliance has now become a recurring part of WWE RAW. The Nature Boy and The Sassy Southern Belle arrived together inside the ThunderDome this week. Evans stated that her relationship with The Dirtiest Player in the Game is all about learning a few tricks from Charlotte Flair's father.
Charlotte Flair was scheduled to face Peyton Royce on this week's WWE RAW. During their match, Ric and Lacey came out together. Lacey was dressed in The Nature Boy's iconic robes. The distraction allowed Royce to temporarily pick up the upper hand in the ring. However, Charlotte eventually managed to tap out her opponent with the Figure Eight Leg Lock.
Charlotte didn't let go of her submission maneuver for a while, just to make a statement on Monday night.
Later, Charlotte said that maybe it was time for The Queen to change her strategy on RAW. Perhaps Charlotte will now adopt Ric Flair's approach as The Dirtiest Player in the Game. Lacey Evans has got a good medium to showcase her acting chops in this storyline as a heel from a character's standpoint.
As far as Charlotte and Asuka's WWE Women's Tag Team Titles are concerned, Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax teased that they would be looking for a rematch soon. However, Charlotte's appearances on RAW were completely detached from her tag partner this week.
#3 Goldberg's advertised WWE RAW appearance in The Dirt Sheet segment was replaced by Gillberg and a spoof version of Drew McIntyre
The 61-year-old Duane Gill reprised his role as Gillberg - Goldberg's spoof character - on this week's WWE RAW. For those unaware, Gill suffered a heart attack in November last year. So it was certainly nice to see him getting the WWE spotlight in 2021.
The Miz and John Morrison's Dirt Sheet show was booked like an intentionally bad WWE segment this week. Not only was Goldberg's advertised appearance used as a bait tactic for Gillberg's arrival, but actor David Krumholtz also appeared in the silly segment last night. Krumholtz portrayed a spoof version of Drew McIntyre on WWE RAW.
After a series of silly shenanigans and fake accents, The Miz said that both Drew McIntyre and Goldberg would lose at the Royal Rumble because The A-Lister will cash-in his Money in the Bank contract to win the WWE title.
There is no denying that WWE fans either loved or hated this segment based on their subjective taste in comedy. Mindless comical segments have been a frequent part of WWE history, and Gillberg's appearance on The Dirt Sheet certainly kickstarted the most farcical WWE segment of 2021 so far.
#2: Randy Orton wore a mask over his face and cut an ominous promo on WWE RAW
When it comes to experimental storytelling in WWE, no other storyline can top Bray Wyatt, Alexa Bliss, and Randy Orton's saga in recent memory.
Alexa Bliss launched a fireball towards Orton's face towards the ending of last week's WWE RAW. It was announced that Orton had suffered minor burns on his face, and the aftermath of the aforementioned scenario kicked-off this week's WWE RAW.
As pictured in the tweet, Randy Orton wore a mask to shield the viewers from his facial injuries. The Viper cut an ominous promo, saying that he showed compassion towards Alexa Bliss by not burning her like The Fiend. However, the same compassion cost him deeply in last week's episode.
Orton also blamed The Fiend for everything. The Apex Predator will not back down from this year's WWE Royal Rumble match. Orton promised to burn everyone else's dreams in the said match so that he will then go on to main event WrestleMania 37.
The aforementioned segment in the darkness was Orton's only appearance throughout the night. However, the impressive production behind the segment perfectly reflected Orton's mental state after he got a taste of his own medicine.
#1: Alexa Bliss transformed into her darker personality in the middle of her main event match against Asuka on WWE RAW
Alexa Bliss was set to face Asuka in a non-title match on this week's WWE RAW.
Both women encountered each other in a bizarre Alexa's Playground segment before their main event clash. A popular Alexa's Playground theory was confirmed on this week's WWE RAW, where Alexa's invisible friend in her playground was clearly referred to as Bray Wyatt/The Fiend last night.
Asuka also referred to The Fiend, and The Empress of Tomorrow's compassionate and enthusiastic attitude, was met by anger from Bliss. This may have led to the major cinematic twist of the main event, where Alexa Bliss transformed from her Playground version to her darker persona during the match.
Asuka was mentally and tactically outmatched against this sinister version of Bliss. In the end, the WWE RAW Women's Champion was successfully defeated after Bliss executed a Sister Abigail maneuver on her opponent.
Alexa Bliss switched back to her Playground persona after the match was over, and The Fiend's voice echoed throughout the arena to end this week's RAW. As a whole, this was a well-executed sequence that showcased Alexa's strengths in the best way possible.
Bliss will also be in the Women's Royal Rumble match. Given that she also pinned Asuka this week, it is very likely that there will be a future rematch between the two with the RAW Women's title at stake.
In the video embedded above, do check out former WWE Head Writer Vince Russo's thoughts on all that went down during this week's RAW in the latest edition of Legion of RAW with Dr. Chris Featherstone.
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