Falls Count Anywhere
Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley
Angle: 8.5/10
- We see a glimpse of Street Profits backstage.
- Lashley immediately spears Strowman, and Strowman mows him down.
- Lashley spears again at ringside, and they're going at it. It should have been this for the last month.
- Braun and Lashley go at it with a chair in the crowd and work their way to the ramp.
- Lashley suplexes Strowman on the stage.
- Strowman spears Lashley through the LED boards, and there's a bunch of pyro that goes off as a result.
- I'm sure someone in WWE will pretend like arm wrestling and tug-of-war had anything to do with how good that opening segment was.
- The pyro was hilarious and overdone, but goddamn, that got a great reaction.
- Corey Graves screamed out "holy shit!"
- Remember when Braun Strowman used to tear shit up a lot and looked like he could be the top guy?
- They even gave a reason for the explosions, saying that there were generators behind the set.
- That opening segment was great. It was fast paced, action-packed, tore some shit up, and showed us camera angles and parts of the arena and backstage we've never seen before. Amazing stuff.
- They're both loaded up in the ambulance. They cut video feeds in the arena.
- You can tell the Street Profits are over when we see them backstage for one second and Strowman & Lashley jump through LED boards to get back there just to get a glimpse.
Samoa Joe & War Raiders defeated New Day
6/10
- War Raiders have some really great offense, but it takes a while for the crowd to care about them.
- Samoa Joe shows up and attacks Xavier Woods early in this match. You know what that means. We got ourselves a RESTARTED MATCH.
- Joe & War Raiders against New Day is set up.
- Corey Graves just casually mentioning that ladders could be involved in Joe vs. Kofi is pretty neat.
- War Raiders and Joe work so well together. They go at New Day viciously.
- There are a big series of dives that end in Ivar getting a big suicide dive.
- Joe chokes out Kofi to beat him!
- Ya know, I'm okay with Joe beating Kofi, even in this spot. Crowd was hot. But Ziggler didn't need to pin Kofi at all last week. Not a bit.
24/7 Championship
Drake Maverick (w/ Renee Michelle Maverick) defeated R-Truth (c) to become champion
- Drake Maverick is backstage with a Maverick 24:7 shirt, and his blindfolded wife, who realizes he's trying to take her to Raw for their honeymoon. She isn't happy. R-Truth shows up to troll Drake.
- Drake Maverick is at ringside for Cesaro vs. No Way Jose, but Cesaro beats up Jose before the bell and does a Neutralizer on the floor.
- Drake hits R-Truth with luggage and pins him before his honeymoon.
- I can not wait to see all the 24/7 honeymoon skits
Backstage Crappenings.
- The Street Profits debut in a backstage promo saying they're on Monday Night Raw.
- Street Profits interrupt Paul Heyman backstage and flip out over Brock Lesnar.
TAKER
- Drew McIntyre and Shane McMahon cut a promo on the Undertaker without saying a whole lot.
- Undertaker's music hits, and it gets a great pop.
- Undertaker doesn't say much of anything besides that he used to respect Shane McMahon a little bit and they're gonna die.
- This felt like one of Undertaker's longest entrance
Lacey Evans (w/ Baron Corbin) defeated Natayla
5/10 (short)
- Baron Corbin cuts a promo with Lacey backstage
- I think it's important for Lacey to have a passable performance tonight.
- As it turns out, she does. Nothing offensive in this match, and took Natalya's moves well.
- Corbin trips up Natalya and allows Lacey to hit the Women's Right for the win.
- Becky Lynch and Seth are looking on.
2 out of 3 Falls
Miz defeated Elias 2-1
6/10
- Miz wishes Bobby and Braun the best in a pre match promo.
- Oh goody, another two out of three falls match.
- What's the point of a goddamn two out of three falls match if they're just gonna end the first one in a few seconds? Stop doing this dumb stuff.
- Miz wins fall one with Skull Crushing Finale, Elias wins fall two with Drift Away.
- They could have just had Elias perform, go to a commercial, and not do the first two falls.
- They get into a really nice chop battle, but Elias lands Cross Rhodes for a two count.
- Elias gets ring post on a knee attempt, and submits to Miz's Figure Four!
- I loved the finish of Elias vs. Miz. Miz winning with a hold he doesn't win with much, after the setup into the post.
- Clever finishes should be the standard, not the outlier.
Becky Lynch & Seth Rollins defeated Mike & Maria Kanellis
SQUASH
- Seth Rollins also has well wishes for Bobby and Braun.
- There's an odd promo with Becky and Seth discussing their relationship,
- Maria interrupts them and challenges them to a match. Maria calls Mike her bitch, and Becky Seth's bitch.
- Seth Rollins lays out Mike Kanellis, and Maria runs from Becky.
- She says she's pregnant and says Mike isn't man enough to knock her up.
- Mike gets submitted by Becky Lynch.
- Maria does this wild promo where she implies Becky Lynch should knock her up instead of Mike Kanellis.
- Big thanks to @HeymanHustle for all the @BlueChew segues on my Raw post-shows
- Are Mike and Maria wild cards?
Carmella defeated Alexa Bliss (w/ Nikki Cross)
SQUASH
Nikki Cross defeated Carmella
N/A (Short)
- Alexa also wishes Braun and Bobby well.
- I'm not sure if it's good or not, but I can't take my eyes off of it.
- Nikki comes out and they kiss up to each other.
- Carmella comes out -- A WILD CARD. If Mike & Maria are wild cards, that's 5 "acts." If not, there's four. It doesn't matter, I just like to count things
- She pins Alexa after challenging her. Immediately.
- They restart with Nikki vs. Carmella after the break.... shit.
- Nikki wins with her finish. Carmella is 50/50'd. Yeesh
- Backstage, Nikki is interviewed, and Alexa won't let her comment on possibly facing Bayley at Extreme Rules.
WWE United States Championship
Ricochet (c) defeated AJ Styles (w/ Good Brothers)
6/10
- Why is Charly Caruso approaching wrestlers cold for interviews backstage while live, interrupting their conversations!? She does that to Ricochet, who is approached and challenged by the Good Brothers.
- The Good Brothers rile up AJ Styles about being soft and Ricochet challenging him. AJ approaches Ricochet and challenges.
- Ricochet hits the Fosbury Flop.
- AJ Styles gets the pin with a Phenomenal Forearm, but Ricochet's foot is under the ropes.
- OH BOY! We got ourselves a good old fashioned RESTARTIN'!! That son of a bitch John Cone sticking his nose where it doesn't belong again!
- We do, and Ricochet is on fire back from the break. He kick flip enziguris off Styles and does the Final Cut.
- Styles can still fly, and does so well. He also does an insane brainbuster and a release Rack Bomb.
- The Good Brothers are at ringside, and Ricochet rolls up Styles for the win.
- They shake hands, and Good Brothers mock them.
- Like a doofus, Ricochet hangs around, and AJ Styles turns on him.
- This is great. An AJ Styles heel turn, and Club reformation. I like it.
- Second rope Styles Clash, and a hot angle to close the show.
Rating guide
10- Perfect, 9- MOTY Territory, 8- Excellent, 7- Great, 6- Good, 5- Average to above average, 4- Slightly below average, 3 or below: Poor
Each match starts at a 5 and slides up and down based on entertainment, execution, time, environment, reaction and stakes. The ratings are in no way an indication of a "star rating," which is a completely different system. A standard, non-offensive "TV match" lands at a 5. The gap between 5.75-6 is generally the largest, with anything reaching 6 being recommended viewing.
These are opinions, and incredibly inconsistent ones. Don't take them too seriously, and have (and share) your own!
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