Overview
Last night’s Monday Night Raw didn’t have the same energy to it that last week had, but overall it was an enjoyable show. Sasha continues to be booked strong, which makes me wonder if she’ll actually take the belt off of Asuka at Extreme Rules (I’m not gonna call it The Horror Show, I don’t care what anyone says!), Dolph is looking better but he doesn’t seem quite ready to challenge Drew, and Bobby Lashley and MVP continue to have one of the strongest stories on the show.
Tonight also saw the return of Ricochet and Cedric Alexander who have been gone for about a month for unknown reasons. Last time we saw these two they looked ready to take on the Raw Tag Team division and maybe even have a run at the tag titles. After tonight it looks like they could be forming an alliance with Apollo Crews to take on MVP and Bobby Lashley (and maybe Shelton Benjamin? Sure, let’s throw him in the mix).
On the other hand, as much as WWE wants us to forget about the outside world during their programing, it is impossible to ignore that WWE probably shouldn’t be doing shows following the outbreak of COVID-19 in the performance center. They definitely shouldn’t be forcing Ric Flair to come in week after week during a pandemic where he is at high risk of getting sick.
That being said, let’s look at the good, the bad, and the ugly of WWE’s Monday Night Raw 6/29/20.
The Good
- Samoa Joe trying to reign in the chaos of the double contract signing. Joe’s presence on Raw as a commentator has been a welcome addition and to see him preside over the contract signing was excellent.
- Ziggler gets to choose the stipulation for his title match with Drew. Dolph might not be looking like the strongest wrestler next to Drew, but this new development could really level the playing field and potentially give us a great match.
- Andrade and Garza calling out the big show. This was the total opposite of how these two fought with each other for the rest of the night. These two working together as a united front verbally sparing with The Big Show was a fantastic moment that really showed what Paul Heyman saw in these guys before Prichard took over the show.
- R-Truth gets the 24/7 title back. This title is his baby and anytime he wins it back, it just feels right.
- Rollins forgiveness promo into his tag match with Humberto and Black. Rollins is doing some great heel work right now and it seems like the Monday Night Messiah storyline will be coming to a head sooner rather than later, but boy did this promo and transition into the match make me believe in Seth as a legitimate threat.
- Humberto Carrillo’s drop kick off the top rope onto Murphy
- Whatever that finisher that Peyton Royce used on Ruby Riott. I loved it!
- The Big Show looks like he is having a lot of fun right now on Raw, good for him.
- Ricochet is back and that makes me so happy!
- Bayley is great on commentary and might be the MVP of the “empty arena era”
- Sasha pins Asuka to win the main event. So, these are two of the best wrestlers in the WWE women’s division and honestly it will be great to see either of them go home champion at Extreme Rules, but the storytelling that is booking Sasha super strong is a great choice!
The Bad
- I keep saying this to myself but Raw has no reason to be 3 hours long during the pandemic. Even when it is a good show, I find myself dragging in the middle hour just ready for it to be over.
- I guess some people don’t watch both SmackDown and Raw but to play that opening Undertaker tribute from last week’s SmackDown just to kill time randomly in the middle of the episode was a bummer. (see also: Raw doesn’t need to be 3 hours long)
- Look, I like Natalya and I want to see whatever it is that creative has planned for her, but Lana hyping her up backstage to Ruby Riott was…I don’t know…the delivery was really stilted or something. I just wasn’t a fan.
The Ugly
- Only one ugly for tonight, but seriously stop bringing Ric Flair in during the pandemic! WWE does not want to be the company that kills Ric Flair, at least I hope they don’t.
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