6 Ups And 7 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (Sept 26)
Those ratings won't be soaring any time soon...
Raw played it safe this week. With ratings edging dangerously close to an embarrassing 20-year low and Clash of Champions delivering a number of baffling booking decisions, WWE's flagship brand presented a slow, steady night of non-action. Nothing was offensively bad, but there was little in the way of storyline progression and development throughout the three hours.
Perhaps this was always going to happen. Raw was going-up against NFL Monday Night Football and one of the most hotly-anticipated US Presidential Debates of all-time last night, and with viewing figures already in the doldrums, WWE must've anticipated another low week. They're not going to serve-up major advancements when they know the audience will be even lower than usual, and that's exactly what happened.
Still, last night's show wasn't without merit. The Universal, Cruiserweight, and Women's Title scenes brought a number of exciting segments and matches, and a set of big matches for the latter two belts have already been made for next week. Despite this, there are worrying times on the horizon for one of Raw's former champions, a set of contenders slumped to a disappointing new low, and a once-compelling rivalry was solved in baffling fashion.
A typically topsy-turvy night on WWE Raw, but what soared like a Cruiserweight, and what landed on its face like Cesaro? Let's get to it...