1.Raw Women's Title: Rhea(c) vs Asuka NR
2.McIntyre vs Strowman vs Orton NR
3.MexiSquad vs The Foundation ***
4.NXT Cruiserweight Title: Escobar(c) vs KUSHIDA ***1/2
5.The Way vs Lumis, Reed, Shotzi, Moon NR
6.AEW Tag Titles: Young Bucks(c) vs Death Triangle ****1/2
7.Dax vs Jericho NR
8.TNT Title, Falls Count Anywhere: Allin(c) vs Hardy ***1/2
9.Owens vs Zayn NR
10.SmackDown Tag Titles: Dirty Dawgs(c) vs Street Profits ***
11.Cesaro vs Jey Uso NR
Thoughts:
A reminder that #SNSM moves to Monday after this edition and that the format is changed.
WATCH THIS EDITION HERE.
Flair returned on Raw to start things this week, cocky as hell in her promo as she called out the division and made it clear that she was back to dominate. Later in the night, a rematch from Mania saw Asuka against Rhea, and it ended with Flair coming out setting up a DQ finish. It didn't look very good and was bloated, literally just serving as a set up for a triple threat between the three down the line. If Flair beats Rhea in the new champ's first defense, I sincerely hope fans that care about WWE stories get pissed.
Bliss explained why she turned on The Fiend and has a new friend. Bray and his buddies did creepy shit. Fun for what it is and nothing more.
Drew, Randy, and Braun's #1 contender match looked decent for what it was. Braun was booked as the visual fall guy after an RKO before a sliding Claymore from McIntyre sealed his spot and a rematch against Lashley. Mace and T-Bar attacked Drew after while MVP played the distraction.
On Ring of Honor, The Foundation beat MexiBlood in a good one. Flamita and Bandido progressively had issues throughout until it finally boiled over. While the angle was the big thing of note here, the action wasn't terrible, either.
On NXT, Kross cut his first promo since winning the brand's top strap. He's champ until he says otherwise. Decent stuff. I've been clear that his reign is a downgrade from Finn but should still be solid nonetheless. The dude should have a bright future in WWE, too.
Next, clips of before, during, and after Cole and Kyle's TakeOver match, and we're shown them being wheeled on a stretcher while Cole screams at the victor. Honestly, it's was hilariously awesome.
Escobar, having just become Undisputed Cruiserweight Champ by beating Devlin in a ladder match, lost to KUSHIDA. It's an interesting move for sure. I don't mind the change and think both are great options for title holders, though it is a tad funny seeing KUSHIDA holding this belt. He left New Japan reportedly because he was tired of being pigeonholed into the Junior division. Pretty good match. Borderline great, really.
Thatcher and Ciampa's backstage promo teased a future match with MSK for the NXT Tag Team Championships. I like MSK but would LOVE to see this duo as title holders.
The Rhea, Gonzalez, and Belair in-ring segment was pretty bad ass. It even included Taya, who I admittedly fear will end up being a Kimber style situation. Either way, the future is now!
Moving along, past the threat of dogs going up asses, we saw a teaser for Sarray set to debut next week. She's an amazing talent, as many of you will soon see.
Strong took his ball and went home, presumably to head to the main roster where he'll spend most of his time in catering before being a name mentioned about a year from now.
An Imperium package made it clear that the unit is going to be seen on Tuesdays far more often moving forward. That's honestly great news.
Mixed-atomic next, and it was a circus act for sure. I'm not attached to the story at all, but The Way were made to look comical at best and yeah, not my cup of tea but entertaining for what it was I suppose.
MJF tried to buy Tyson. It didn't go well.
The Tag Championship match was a MOTYC, with top shelf athleticism, good pacing, strong action throughout, and nice touches of drama. The Full Heel Bucks are fun af, of course, as they always work best as heels. This was my MOTW.
Jericho beat Dax next in a good looking one. Tyson legit KO'ed Cash. The interference stuff is a bit much for me, for the record. After, Tyson was declared an official member of Inner Circle.
Christian rejected Taz and then was destroyed by Hobbs. Good shit.
A little overbooked at parts with interference and smoke & mirrors, the TNT Title match still had enough going on that it was a pretty good defense. The reign has been enjoyable and Matt deserves credit for putting on one of his best matches in a while. Thumbs up.
On IMPACT, a press conference building to the Swann/Omega match ended in a brawl. The entire thing was honestly kayfabe gold and quality entertainment. Watch that for sure!
Roman's cocky promo's up next, with Cesaro coming out at the end. I like the look Reigns wore when he came out, but wish Cole had been more subtle with the selling of it. That's asking far too much, though. As the Swiss Superman went for the mic, Roman and crew left showing clear disrespect.
A WM rematch next, with KO and Sami going one on one. It looked okay, but was more a building block. Sami lost via count out; Owens then brought him back in for a stunner after.
KO backstage said again that he's trying to "stun Sami back to reality". That's not...that's not how mental health works. If it was, I would have given a stunner to some of my family that feel for qanon.
Shit takes aside, next up we had the Dirty Dawgs beating the Street Profits to retain the SmackDown Tag Team Championships. Honestly, Roode and Dolph are a fun team and it's nice seeing them getting used for...well, something. Everyone worked well and the match was enjoyable.
We close with Cesaro beating Jey Uso by DQ, thanks to Seth running in and attacking. It was a solid match before that and served largely as a building block in the end.
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