7 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE Raw (Aug 22)
A huge return, nice homecoming, good action, but some bad luck and false advertising.
When we talk about grading WWE on a curve, the method has certainly changed during the past month.
Previously, you would expect a certain amount of goofiness, silly antics, nonsensical promos, dropped story threads, and so on. You’d overlook a certain amount of it and praise just basic storytelling or consistency when that should be the bare minimum to expect.
Today, Raw has become shockingly competent, and sometimes very good. It’s not the best wrestling show on TV each week, but you don’t cringe as much tuning in. It’s also more difficult to rate the show. Do you applaud WWE for doing the basics correctly, or start expecting more from them and hold them to a higher standard?
The wrestling for the most part was really good Monday, with Edge/Damian Priest, Kevin Owens/Chad Gable and the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship tournament semifinals coming off really well.
Raw also delivered a legit huge return (for longtime NXT fans) that could end up being a big deal. It also saw two Hall-of-Famers return, with one teasing a return to the ring (and likely not going to follow through) and another jumping right into the fray to make a save (likely setting up a program).
Overall, this was another good effort from WWE and an enjoyable show, but not a blow-away episode by any means. Still, we’ll take this version of WWE as opposed to what we’ve been force-fed for the past few years.
Let’s get to it…