4 Ups And 8 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (Aug 28)
Could one or two segments save Raw? Cena, Reigns, Bliss and Banks definitely tried.
How can an episode of Raw with so many negatives be considered a passable program?
Well, if Raw is a one or two-note show, and those notes are deafening, then it can compensate for some of the lesser moments. That’s more or less what we got Monday night, as Raw gave us plenty of head-scratching moments, but it also gave us a couple must-see segments.
If you haven’t already, track down and watch the entire John Cena/Roman Reigns promo segment. It’s truly worth watching, whether you like or hate both men, and regardless of whether you love or hate worked shoot promos. There was a lot of truth spilled during this segment, and the fans responded to nearly everything that came from both men.
We also got a solid Raw Women’s Championship match, though many will undoubtedly question the wisdom of the booking. We saw Brock Lesnar speak plainly about what Braun Strowman could expect at No Mercy next month. And we saw a new #1 contender named for the Intercontinental Championship.
But we also saw 50/50 booking rear its ugly head once again. We saw a feud that should have ended at SummerSlam presumably continuing. We saw the debut of the newest member of the cruiserweight division, a wrestler who won’t set the world on fire inside the ring but will probably light up the mic.
With that said, let’s see what got the job done and what fell short of the goal. Let’s get to it…
Downs...
8. #EmmaIsDelusional
Ordinarily, establishing any type of character or storyline for the second tier of women on the Raw roster would merit an “up,” but when it revolves around more or less embarrassing one of the women then it’s not going to fare well.
Ever since her failed reinvention as Emmalina, Emma has been treated like persona non grata, largely serving as cannon fodder despite being one of the more talented women on the roster. She could have easily been a credible challenger for someone like Bayley or Sasha Banks, but instead, she has been mired in an angle where she insists that she’s responsible for starting the women’s revolution.
Emma actually has become obsessed about this, and on Monday put her ability to make that claim on the line against Mickie James. And after a dull 90-second match, Emma won via rollup and grabbed a mic to take credit for the women’s revolution.
And that was it.
If this was leading somewhere, like Paige returning to challenge Emma for who’s responsible, or maybe if Emma started winning matches in a quest for respect, then this would rate far better. Prove this column wrong, WWE.