3 Ups & 6 Downs From WWE Raw (July 11)

1. Directionless Women

Normally, this writer would prefer WWE to do its storytelling in the ring, but in the case of the women’s tag match Monday night, a lot more could have been accomplished by having the participants do backstage interviews or pre-recorded segments.

Since returning, Alexa Bliss has clearly been “off.” Her matches haven’t had the same sizzle they used to, and more importantly, her character hasn’t been clearly defined, which also might be contributing to the lackluster return. Bliss is one of the better wrestlers in the division, and getting fans behind her could make a huge difference. A chat backstage could have helped more than her win over Nikki ASH.

Speaking of Nikki, why is she still dressing like and being referred to as (almost) a superhero? Her character clearly has changed, but she is still dressing like a goof. Her relationship with Doudrop was beginning to be explored, but then was just dropped in favor of having them lose. A lot. Without any explanation of their ongoing partnership. They just team up and lose.

How are you supposed to invest in these characters when you’re not given a reason to cheer or boo, and then they’re just having mediocre matches? If you need to fill time on a 3-hour Raw, use a couple of your 37 writers and script some promos or film a vignette.