6 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE Raw (Results & Review - 15 Jan)

2. Where Was Master Gable?

When Ivar and Valhalla began attacking Akira Tozawa and Maxxine Dupri, respectively, after the men’s match, there was a moment when fans thought that surely the rest of Alpha Academy would run out for the save.

But no one came out to prevent Maxxine from getting headbutted onto dream street and Ivar from squashing Tozawa. One might have concluded that Chad Gable and Otis didn’t make it to Raw Monday night and were unable to save their teammates, but everyone found out moments later that they were just hanging out backstage with the Creed Brothers, as they consoled the beaten wrestlers.

Why wouldn’t Gable have run out to try to help his pupils and prevent them from suffering a post-match attack? His promo, where he called Ivar a “coward, savage, idiot” repeatedly, sounded more like a rejected Chris Jericho line.

All of this was to set up a match that fans should be looking forward to next week, but WWE managed to put it together in the sloppiest way possible, with Tozawa actually beating Ivar, Gable not being there to stand up for his teammates, and the promo sounding off.

Worse, the Creeds looked like potted plants, existing only to offer brief sympathy before chasing after Ivy Nile as she went to demand a match with Valhalla for next week. Their momentum from their call-up feels like it’s all but dissipated during this past month.