I feel like this episode proved me wrong.
This was really a decent episode and the draft itself was solid as a whole.
Retribution didn't appear on the show which is odd since WWE promoted the leader, Mustafa Ali in their preview post.
pictures via WWE.com
Drew McIntyre Brought Up The Last Time That He Was Actually Pinned.
Unlike Smackdown, the show didn't kick off with the first round of the draft but rather an in-ring promo courtesy of the apex predator.
Orton pretty much said that he doesn't care whether he's drafted to Smackdown or not, Drew's locked in with the viper at Hell In A Cell and will take the RKO.
Just like the title above, Drew McIntyre did acknowledge the fact that Orton was the first person to pin him since last year (damn, they PROTECTED the Scotsmen).
The segment ended with a brawl. As a guy that wanted this feud to have some sort of conclusion very soon, I didn't hate this segment.
I appreciated how it used continuity by bringing up the last time Drew was pinned inside the ring.
Round one.
RAW: "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt.
Smackdown: Bayley.
RAW: Randy Orton.
Smackdown: Street Profits.
RAW: Charlotte Flair.
Well, my question regarding whether Street Profits is moving to Smackdown has been answered.
Overall, nothing to be excited or to be mad about these draft picks.
Kevin Owens vs Aleister Black In A No DQ Match.
Black needs to chill with those kicks because damn, they look brutal.
Speaking of brutal, that double knee to Owens on the chair was just…….
The match concluded with a stunner on Aleister followed by a powerbomb through the table and that's how Owens walked out of the Thunderdome as the victor.
The fight was fun even with the brutality surrounding it.
Round 2.
RAW: Braun Strowman.
Smackdown: Daniel Bryan.
RAW: Matt Riddle.
Smackdown: Kevin Owens.
RAW: Jeff Hardy.
Seth Rollins just got his wish. Matthew Riddal is on Monday Night RAW.
The Jeff Hardy pick is really an odd one. The Strowman one though isn't really a shocker.
Miz TV. Special Guests, Mandy Rose And Dana Brooke.
Miz and John Morrison recapped the draft and they called out their guests, Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke.
Rose and Brooke even got new theme music which isn't bad.
Out came Lana and Natalya and they were bothered by the fact that Miz featured a couple of blondes.
That led to a brawl between the heel and the babyface team.
A commercial break later and you thought that Miz TV was over, right?
Lars Sullivan showed up and he destroyed John Morrison while Miz ran away.
What do I think of this entire segment? It was okay.
I do not care about Lars Sullivan, like at all.
How did WWE handle the tag team title situation? Well, The New Day and The Street Profits exchanged their titles.
Does this mean that The Street Profits are a 2-time tag teams champions?
Round 3.
RAW: Retribution.
Smackdown: Lars Sullivan.
RAW: Keith Lee.
Smackdown: King Corbin.
RAW: Alexa Bliss.
King Corbin stays on the blue brand. *an unenthusiastic yayyyyyy!*.
Alexa Bliss moving to RAW makes sense given that Wyatt is on that show now.
Seth Rollins' Farewell Speech As The Monday Night Messiah.
Seth Rollins said that this is an end of an era because he's stepping into the red brand one final time.
Rollins questions whether someone is going to fill the shoes as the leader of Monday Nights and his answer was a hell Nah.
Out came Jeff Hardy and Seth was laughing at the fact that Hardy is going to lead the show.
AJ Styles came out and insulted Seth Rollins while he was cutting a promo about Jeff Hardy which I thought was funny.
Seth didn't find that funny to which Hardy took out both guys.
Then, a triple threat match between Rollins, Styles and Hardy went underway. It was aight.
Given that he was taken out of action because of a car accident sustained by Jeff Hardy, the attack made sense.
Then again, Jeff didn't actually do it but I'm not Elias so he probably has a better explanation than me.
Round 4.
RAW: Elias.
Smackdown: Sami Zayn.
RAW: Lacey Evans.
Smackdown: Cesaro And Shinsuke Nakamura.
RAW: Sheamus.
This is a unique pick. Sheamus is on Monday Nights once again.
Also, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn are on the same show.
Maybe a feud between them could happen?
Mandy Rose And Dana Brooke vs Lana And Natalya.
Mandy Rose looked impressive in the match with the roll-up into a clothesline.
Another impressive thing that happened was how the match ended with a senton from Dana Brooke on Mandy Rose's shoulders.
Natalya walked out of the ring after telling Lana that the tag team between them isn't working out.
Wasn't sure how I felt about the team but now, I'm liking the duo of Rose and Brooke.
Angel Garza vs Andrade.
The match was fine. Angel Garza picked up the W with the wind clipper.
Zelina Vega went to check on Andrade and then, Bray Wyatt as well as Alexa Bliss, delivered the sister Abigail on Andrade and Zelina Vega.
Zelina Vega was just chosen by Smackdown minutes after I posted this review while Andrade isn't.
I do not understand why they didn't pick Andrade.
Andrade just fought for the tag title and was featured a lot in the current pandemic era.
Round 5.
RAW: Nikki Cross.
Smackdown: Dolph Ziggler And Robert Roode.
RAW: R Truth.
Smackdown: Apollo Crews.
RAW: Dabba-Kato.
What's the use of the RAW tag team championship match if Ziggler and Roode are moving to Smackdown?
They automatically made me not care about that match.
Apollo Crews moving to Smackdown is a good move.
Glad that he's staying away from the Hurt Business.
The New Day vs Dolph Ziggler And Robert Roode For The RAW Tag Team Championship.
Am I going to surprise you when I tell you that The New Day retained the championship?
Elias explained his actions telling Charly Caruso that it was Jeff Hardy that took him out of action for months.
Ricochet vs Cedric Alexander.
This match came about in a backstage segment where Ricochet approached the Hurt Business with an offer.
The offer is a match and if he wins then The Hurt Business leaves the man alone.
However, if he loses then he joins the Hurt Business.
I like this idea. It gives this feud a finality and I am more than happy about that.
It also made me invested in this encounter as a result, unlike the RAW tag team championship match.
Side note, look at Bobby Lashley with that white suit.
He looks like he's dropping a new R&B album.
The question is, did Ricochet win or lose?
He did win due to Ricochet hitting the mat with the chair and tossed the chair to Cedric Alexander.
The referee saw this and gave Ricochet the win via disqualification.
Sneaky, sneaky, sneaky WWE.
They had Ricochet cheat his way to victory as a destination to continue the feud.
If that isn't the case, why can't Ricochet win the bout clean?
Round 6
RAW: Titus O'Neil.
Smackdown: Carmella.
RAW: Peyton Royce.
Smackdown: Aleister Black.
RAW: Akira Tozawa.
Akira is going to feud with R Truth for the 24/7 championship AGAIN.
Number One Contender's Battle Royale Match.
The running joke continues as Lana went straight through the announce table by Nia Jax.
Meanwhile, backstage, Drew McIntyre was fighting with Randy Orton.
Somehow, Lana won the whole thing after we thought that Natalya won it by eliminating Lacey Evans.
By the way, Lana cut a good promo on RAW Talk and it's the best mic work I've seen from hers in a long time.
So, to recap for all of you slow mofos.
Like: The opening segment, Kevin Owens vs Aleister Black, the pairing of Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke is growing on me, the draft picks were solid overall.
Didn't like: how lame and predictable it was to host a RAW tag team championship with the challengers moving to Smackdown, Andrade not being drafted.
What do you guys think about this episode of RAW? Sound off in the comments below. Follow me on the tweets @omartheplayaguy and follow this very blog for honest pro wrestling opinions. Anyway, stay safe smarks.
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