6 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE Raw (Nov 14)
Good wrestling as Theory rebounds, Ali gets murked, Dominik owns his inadequacies.
Maybe it’s just due to endorphins or a generally good mood, but WWE Raw was a pretty good little show Monday night. A few good matches, some entertaining character work and a couple of nods to history are often enough.
That’s not to say Raw was perfect. The show started out with a dismal thud, leaving an ominous feeling after the first hour that this was going to be an all-time bad episode, possibly the worst of the new regime. And while Raw rebounded solidly the last two hours, we have to temper the excitement by noting the shortcomings and pointing out that there still was nothing blowaway good here that will be remembered for months to come.
Mustafa Ali had a terrible night. The Miz/Dexter Lumis story continues to be abysmal, although it looks like there’s an end in sight. And one wrestler’s first Raw singles match in months could likely be their last after a poor showing.
But Raw featured two really solid matches involving Matt Riddle, Chad Gable, Seth Rollins and Finn Balor. Dominik Mysterio (!) shined as he continues to grow into his character perfectly. Austin Theory rebounded and had a strong night. Even Baron Corbin had a good night, not surprisingly because JBL’s antics were minimized.
Overall, this was a nice night for WWE, though a marginal one. Let’s get to it…