After a successful Hell in a Cell PPV last night for the Raw brand, a special Halloween edition of Raw focused on laying the initial groundworks for Survivor Series, which airs on November 20th. Goldberg and Paul Heyman opened the show, hyping up the much-anticipated rematch.
Mick Foley began building his teams for the cross-brand Survivor Series matches. Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins both looked to take down Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens. These segments and more were the focus in the aftermath of Hell in a Cell, as WWE and the Raw brand now look towards Survivor Series.
Was this a successful Halloween edition of Raw, or did it scare viewers away? Let’s find out, as I Analyse and Grade Each Segment from the October 31st edition of WWE Raw.
#1 Goldberg opens the show:
Grade: 8/10
Rather than having the fans wait around for Goldberg to make his appearance, WWE made the smart decision of allowing him to open the show. Instead of having Goldberg cut another promo as he did two weeks ago, Paul Heyman was expertly introduced into the mix.
Heyman cut a splendid promo, as usual, hyping up fans for the Survivor Series bout and even brilliantly teasing that Lesnar was here tonight. Unfortunately, WWE chose poorly in their decision of who was to confront Goldberg.
Rusev interrupted (for no real reason), and was ultimately squashed by Goldberg. Rather than using a lower-card heel, the Bulgarian Brute was sacrificed for the sake of further putting over Goldberg’s explosiveness. An unwise choice from WWE, who needed to give Rusev some much-needed momentum after his loss to Roman Reigns at Hell in a Cell.
Despite this misstep, it was awesome to see Goldberg hit a Jackhammer and Spear again, and this was a fun way to open the show and have the crowd hot from the get-go.
#2 Luke Gallows vs Enzo Amore (Trick or Treat Fight):
Grade: 5/10
Of course, due to this being a special Halloween episode of Raw, there had to be a silly gimmick match at some point in the night. Unfortunately, Gallows and Anderson were chosen for it right after their revitalising win last night, as their momentum gained at Hell in a Cell was crushed, when they were humiliated by Halloween props.
Enzo and Cass’ promo before the bout was as usual, very entertaining, but the match itself was weak and very slow, and it did no favours for either team. A pointless and silly Halloween gimmick match that hurt the rivalry between the two teams significantly, let’s hope this is something WWE avoid in future.
#3 T.J. Perkins vs. Brian Kendrick (Cruiserweight Championship Rematch):
Grade: 7/10
Although the match finished before it could ever get going, the post-match events were the main talking point here. Perkins finally showed some personality, as he lashed out at the sneaky Kendrick, attacking him with the knee-bar at ringside. More fire from Perkins like this in future will allow him to become more popular among fans.
The finish was great as well, as Kendrick decided to retain his title via a count-out loss rather than fight Perkins any longer, which fits right into his current heel character. This was a logical way to follow up on the story put in place at Hell in a Cell, and this was a nice segment for this rivalry as it looks set to continue.
#4 Mick Foley addresses Survivor Series:
Grade: 7/10
Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho continue to be the highlight of Raw, as they interrupted and taunted the GM. Jericho continues to be ridiculously entertaining, and it is only a matter of time before he turns babyface by either attacking Owens or being attacked by Owens.
Foley laid the groundwork for the Survivor Series male team, which is shaping up nicely as the road to the PPV begins. Reigns being introduced as the babyface member of the team didn’t have the effect WWE would have liked, but they obviously don’t care how the fans react to him at this point.
His corny humour continued despite just being an ass-kicker inside Hell in a Cell 24 hours ago, and he, unfortunately, continues to receive negative reactions, with a ‘Roman Sucks’ chant breaking out. This was also a decent way to set up the United States Championship main event bout for later, but all this could have been achieved in a shorter time frame.
Still, a solid segment that set up the main event for later in the night, as well as entertaining us with Jericho and Owens’ brilliance.
#5 Battle Royal- Winner becomes a member of Team Raw (Males):
Grade: 6/10
With a large majority of the competitors being undercard or tag team competitors, it was sadly very predictable that it would come down to Zayn and Strowman. A one-on-one bout would have served way better to put Strowman over, but nonetheless, Strowman will be a member of Team Raw for Survivor Series.
Whether he is ready for the position or he has been pushed in, is yet to be seen, but Strowman as a monster heel is an intriguing prospect for now. The story of Zayn almost overcoming the odds against the giant bully was endearing, and will hopefully not be forgotten by WWE, as Strowman heads into the cross-brand Survivor Series match.
It helped the crowd get behind Zayn further, and a match in the future between the two would be a wonderful piece of storytelling. Overall, a predictable battle royal with a nice finish, although a one-on-one bout could have served better.
#6 Cruiserweight six-man tag match:
Grade: 6/10
Once again, the Cruiserweights continue to shine in the ring but lack in other areas. WWE have done very little character development or storylines for any Cruiserweights outside the title picture, and the result is a dead crowd, who only pop for a couple of spots and the finish of a match.
Results in these bouts mean absolutely nothing going forward, and right now Cruiserweights are basically used for spots and nothing else. Unless WWE begins developing proper stories for these competitors, incredibly talented superstars like Tony Nese and Cedric Alexander will get lost in the shuffle.
A solid match, sure, but nothing of note moving forward for Raw.
#7 Charlotte and Bayley Promo, Nia Jax vs. Bayley:
Grade for Both: 7/10
Charlotte continues to reign supreme as the best women’s heel in the business, and her promo only furthered that trend. Mocking Banks and Bayley for their failures, Charlotte plays the arrogant, vicious heel better than anyone, as the crowd legitimately boo her rather than cheer her like other heels.
Bayley was great here as the plucky underdog, and hopefully, for her, a title shot is approaching soon.
Wonderful storytelling throughout this bout saved this from being completely pointless, as Bayley played her role as the hearty underdog against the dominant giant to perfection. Nia Jax continues to impress as a monster heel, with her winning streak back on track.
But, the ease with which Jax won is disheartening for Bayley, as WWE overuse the underdog loss with her a bit too much. Instead of appearing like a legitimate Women’s Championship challenger coming out of her win at Hell in a Cell, Bayley has lost significant momentum with a big loss to Jax.
#8 Sheamus and Cesaro vs. The Shining Stars:
Grade: 5/10
After earlier interactions in the battle royal, Cesaro and Sheamus, had an entire segment once again to continue their story of the dysfunctional duo. Their antics in the battle royal were fun and kept the storyline centre stage despite not being the focus. Their match here, however? Largely forgettable.
The Shining Stars still have the worst gimmick in WWE, and their credibility is completely gone in the eyes of fans. The obvious winners from the start, Cesaro and Sheamus could have been kept in the battle royal only, and fans wouldn’t complain.
If the New Day had come out during this match and confronted the duo, maybe this wouldn’t have been pointless. Unfortunately, this was a short, pointless bout that had Cesaro and Sheamus featured again, despite having already kept their story centre stage earlier.
#9 Roman Reigns vs. Chris Jericho (United States Championship Match):
Grade: 8.5/10
In a very good bout between two splendid in-ring performers (despite Jericho being past his prime), Reigns and Jericho had the crowd hot with this stellar match to close the show. With the title on the line, the two men had fans wondering whether Jericho could get the upset.
Even though he didn’t, both competitors looked great, and even though Reigns receives very negative reactions, he wrestles some splendid matches. Owens getting involved during the match to halt Reigns’ momentum was brilliant, as his heel work continues to be very entertaining.
Although a DQ finish usually leaves fans disappointed, it left fans eager for Rollins to make his way to the ring, even with its predictability. Rollins was wonderful once he appeared, obviously fired up, as he took out both Owens and Jericho, unintentionally aiding Reigns.
The lingering stare between Reigns and Rollins was storytelling gold, as the fans erupted at even the slightest hint of them reuniting. Overall, a splendid match that was capped off by a smart finish, as Survivor Series slowly approaches.
Overall Grade for Raw: 7.5/10
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