-The Joe Tessitore era of WWE Raw started this week and it didn’t start off great. The opening of the show was clearly built on Tessitore introducing himself to the show and into the WWE ecosystem, but was delivered in an over the top way that didn’t land. A little tone deaf and seemed like more for the show of announcing his arrival to potential business partners than it was ingratiating himself with fans.
Thumbs up, Joe
-Bizarre intro aside, Tessitore had a very good night on commentary. Sure, he flubbed some move names and felt a little scattered in calling the matches, but he knew the product. He knew names and understood the beats of all the storylines. More importantly than that, he articulated the stories and angles well. He was relatable in that regard. That’s a strong foundation to start out on and puts him ahead of where his counterparts like Adnan Virk and Jimmy Smith were when they premiered on the show.
-How about that Rhea Ripley pop? Just huge and proves she’s one the most important commodities Raw has. It’s hard to believe just a few years ago she was teaming up with Nikki ASH.
-Liv Morgan getting an upper hand on Rhea Ripley with the leg injury was a smart touch coming out of what was essentially a squash match at Bash in Berlin. Morgan needs to maintain at least some credibility as champion. This gave her that, but protected Rhea at the same time.
-Did you see that slap from Chad Cable to Julius Creed?! Goodness. An interesting way to present their relationship and it worked too. The Creed Brothers defeated Alpha Academy and now have a date with the Wyatt Sicks.
Howdy vs. Gable
-Speaking of, very cool seeing Uncle Howdy cut a live promo on the ramp to accept Gable’s challenge. The mask was fine in that environment and I thought he came across as a pro wrestler rather than a scary horror movie character. WWE has gotten a lot out of Wyatt Sicks vs. Gable — more than they had any right to. The feud should end with this match next week. Both need to go on to other things in order to stay fresh.
-Zelina Vega vs. Shayna Baszler was what it was. Fine match and important for Baszler to win. After the match, Sonya Deville finally cut a mission promo for Pure Fusion Collective. It wasn’t great, but it was something that now defines their existence on the show.
Bye bye bracelet
-Ok, the CM Punk promo was ok. Is that the bar now for Punk promos? Ok? It hit the right talking points and smartly challenged Gunther, but once again it was delivered in a choppy, awkward way that was hard for fans in the building to get behind. The Drew McIntyre attack on Punk was tremendous. Punk needed a reason to fight Drew McIntyre again and now he has one. The bracelet is gone — yay — and it served it’s purpose? The visual of Drew McIntyre shoving the beads down Punk’s throat worked to take the angle to a higher level of violence and darkness. Thumbs way up.
-Ilja Dragunov advancing in the WWE Intercontinental Championship tournament works for the match they are building. It’s looking like a work rate match at this point and helps to that end. Still, it’s Jey Uso’s to lose.
-As for Jey Uso, his interaction with Bron Breakker was a bright spot on the show. They made you want to see them beat each other up, plus Breakker continued his run of smooth promo performances. I liked the dynamic between the two a lot.
Ouch
-Geez, Kairi Sane smacked her face on the side of the announce table in a spot during their match with Alba Fyre & Isla Dawn. Her eye looked really bad after the match. Here’s hoping she’s ok. The match was fine. Fyre and Dawn beating Sane and Sky is weird on the surface, but makes sense. It’s better for Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill to wrestle true heels at this point in their run as tag team champions. Sometimes that means others need to lose in order to make things happen. Sane and Sky had to play that role this week. Sane and Sky will still be players on the show moving forward.
-A strong championship win promo from Gunther. Simple, straightforward, but well-delivered. Sami Zayn works as his next opponent. Zayn is believable because he’s beat Gunther already, but will have fans on his side. Zayn can make you believe and fans will want to see him win the world title.
-Ok, Braun Strowman was not effective in selling the injuries from last week’s big car spot with Bronson Reed. He was like a cartoon out there trying to convey that he was in pain and in harms way because of it. Strowman winning his triple threat and advancing in the Intercontinental Championship tournament is pretty far-fetched and hurts the aura of that spot. Reed too.
Get the guy some luck!
-Reed can’t buy luck at this point when it comes to his WWE pushes. The push of his life and he is out again? The business is cruel sometimes.
-Really fun main event that was built to send the fans home happy again around the Priest/Rhea vs. Judgment Day storyline. I’d imagine we’re headed for two singles matches at Bad Blood. Priest vs. Balor and Ripley vs. Morgan. Two solid matches for a show full of grudges.
What did you think of this week’s episode of WWE Raw? Let us know in the comments!
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First RAW I've seen in a long time. Loved Joe. Breath of fresh air from Pat McAfee. As long as he's gone, I'll keep watching.