3 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE Raw (31 Aug - Results & Review)
Raw misses the mark with taped, inconsequential show featuring outstanding main event.
If you’re looking for a single word to describe Monday Night Raw this week, it would simply be: inconsequential.
Raw was ultimately a low-stakes, forgettable episode that delivered disappointing matches, a bland Roman Reigns promo segment, and a grabby attempt to spark a conversation that – despite being replayed throughout the show – became less impressive and important as the night wore on.
Raw opened with Royce Keys and OTM shockingly attacking the Usos backstage, bloodying them up and leaving them for dead. If WWE thought that would set the pace for the night, they were collectively gutted when things trailed off quickly and settled into a blasé rhythm for much of the program, until the main event finally elevated the show and delivered what WWE was hoping for: a buzz-worthy, action-packed match that fans will talk about.
But beyond that, Raw was a huge letdown Monday night. It wasn’t cataclysmically bad or anything approaching that, but this is not going to make a top 30 list of Raw episodes in 2026, put it that way – the definition of phoning it in.
Let’s get to it…