RAW In A Nutshell: Dog Days Of Summer Are Here

Hello there everyone! On International Dog Day, it’s only fitting to point out that the dog days of summer are here. Kids everywhere are either going back to school, or will be soon. The days are getting cooler. Football is almost back (c’mon, we all know preseason does not count). This is our last RAW before the calendar flips to September, and tonight will be all about prepping for Clash of Champions, with perhaps some King of the Ring sprinkled in for good measure. Are you ready? Then let’s crack open this Nutshell!

Best Match of the night:

A few to choose from here. Really liked Ricochet and Drew McIntyre. Can also say I thoroughly liked Cedric Alexander and Cesaro.

For that matter, the tag turmoil match was not as bad as it could have been (that’s a good thing) and then even the main event was entertaining.

But the first two matches mentioned were the best two of the evening.

Worst match of the night:

Really wanted to like Nikki Cross and Bayley...but it was very short and very forgettable.

This can’t bode well for Bayley as champion, as she’s just not exciting for whatever reason.

Crowd Chants of the Night:

Becky

Star of the Night

Honestly, this was a big night for both Ricochet and Cedric Alexander. Both men had big wins

Jobber of the Night:

A bit of an odd choice, sure, but at the end of the show, The O.C. certainly did a job to make Strowman look like the Monster we are led to see him as. One big man taking out all three, men of their caliber? Yeah, they did the job alright.

Upset of the Night:

It seems almost unfair to say this, but Ricochet over Drew McIntyre absolutely had a bit of that upset feel, didn’t it?

Holy Sh** Moment of the Night:

There wasn’t one I felt was worthy tonight

Botch of the night:

Kind of surprising, but AJ Styles had one in the main event. Went for a springboard moonsault off the middle rope and missed or slipped. Had to catch himself and recover for the move, and it was clearly a goof-so much so that the announce team all commented on it.

Noteworthy Moment:

Before the show, Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler hadn’t been a tag team. By the end of the show, they were the new number one contenders for the RAW Tag Team Championships.

On one hand, pretty cool. On another? Considering that WWE does have a few accomplished tag teams on the roster, it’s puzzling that the current champions and the number one contenders are both mash-ups of typical singles competitors.

Overall lowlights:

I really wish Bayley would get more over than she is. It’s a bummer, to be honest.

Overall highlights:

The King of the Ring matches were good, again.

Ricochet and Cedric impressed

The tag team turmoil match-aside from putting a non-tag team over-was really good for what it was.

The main event was not the best, it will never be confused as a match of the year contender…but it was entertaining.

After the final bell:

All in all, not a bad show. Not a great show, but nothing about it really made me consider changing the channel either.

WWE just has to keep in mind, Monday Night Football is right around the corner. They will need to keep getting better, or ratings will struggle.