14th Sep2022

‘WWE Raw’ Review (Sep 12th 2022)

by Phil Wheat

Welcome to this review of this week’s Monday Night Raw, right here on Nerdly. So get into it and let’s see what went down this week…

Match #1: Finn Bálor def. Matt Riddle

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

After Seth “Freakin” Rollins declared himself the face of Monday Night Raw, The Judgment Day offered to take on Matt Riddle and provide a new path forward. The Original Bro declined the ominous proposition and kickstarted a match with Finn Bálor. Damian Priest attempted to tip the scales in the match, but some ingenious offense and an assist from Rey Mysterio evened the odds. A final intervention from The Visionary allowed Bálor to line up a Coup de Grace and take home the statement victory for The Judgment Day. After the match, Rollins delivered one final Stomp, hoping to end his rivalry with Riddle for good.

My Score: 3.5 out of 5

Match #2: WWE Women’s Tag Team Title Match – Dakota Kai & IYO SKY def. Raquel Rodriguez & Aliyah

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Damage CTRL laid out their mission last week to capture all the gold, and Dakota Kai & IYO SKY took a huge step to accomplishing that goal. Raquel Rodriguez set up Aliyah for a splash onto the challengers with a unique press and toss of her teammate. Damage CTRL had a few tricks up their sleeve as well, as Bayley’s interference set up SKY to go skyscraping to take out Rodriguez and allow Kai to swoop in with a back-breaking pin of Aliyah to crown new champions.

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #3: Johnny Gargano def. Chad Gable

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

After stunning the WWE Universe with his return three weeks ago, Johnny Gargano made his highly anticipated in-ring return. Chad Gable looked to play spoiler, but Johnny Wrestling showed little signs of ring rust and shook the Richter scale with a dive into Gable & Otis on the outside. Gargano followed that up with One Final Beat to clinch the win, but the under-handed Austin Theory had the last laugh with a selfie-worthy assault aided by the Money in the Bank briefcase.

My Score: 4 out of 5

Match #4: Raw Women’s Championship Match – Bianca Belair def. Sonya Deville

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Bianca Belair felt motivated to deliver an open challenge for the Raw Women’s Title, and Sonya Deville swooped in for the surprise acceptance. The blue brand Superstar looked to seize the opportunity with some devious tactics, but The EST flexed her muscles with a clinching K.O.D. The victory didn’t impress Damage CTRL however, as the trio launched a post-match attack that was only broken up by the emergence of Asuka & Alexa Bliss.

My Score: 2.5 out of 5

Match #5: 2-on-1 Handicap Match – Omos def. local competitors

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Omos shocked the system and made quick work of the competition in a 2-on-1 Handicap Match.

My Score: 0 out of 5

Match #6: Edge def. Dominik Mysterio (DQ)

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Rey Mysterio did everything he could to talk sense into his son, but Dominik Mysterio was intent on stepping out of his father’s shadow. The Rated-R Superstar was showing a bit of the after effects from last week’s attack by The Judgment Day, but his legendary grit showed when he crawled his way to the ropes during the younger Mysterio’s submission. With Edge set to teach the ultimate lesson, The Master of the 619 stepped in and begged the WWE Hall of Famer to show mercy. The confusion opened the door for The Judgment Day to line up repeated steel chair blows to Edge.

My Score: 3 out of 5

Final Verdict: 3.5/5

Three solid matches buoyed this show in a sea of mediocrity – what the hell was that Omos match all about for instance? The women’s tag match felt like a re-write of the mistake from the last title match whilst the Women’s Championship match felt like another missed opportunity to introduce or at least re-introduce someone new to the main roster rather than roll out Sonia Deville (who at least isn’t stuck in a “management” role). As for the main event… I’ll wait and see what this Dom/Judgement Day has in store before passing “judgement” (pun intended) on this storyline.

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