5 Biggest Takeaways from Raw (September 13th, 2021)
I like to keep things as positive as possible.
I like WWE.
I like AEW.
- Mr. Money in the Bank… Finn Balor! - November 28, 2023
- A Quick Fix: 3 Changes to Make with AEW Programming - November 4, 2023
- And The DEVIL is….. - November 2, 2023
Wow. If you have actually been watching the show, that makes the third week in a row where Raw has been on the upswing. With the biggest complaints for a few months now being the rematches on Raw, last night was a night full of new matches mixed in with combinations of previous matches that were presented differently. Throwing Drew together with the Viking Raiders to take on Jinder and company gave us a different match with some familiar participants. The 8 man tag match did the same, and whereas I’m not a fan of big matches like that outside of Survivor Series, this one served a purpose to further push and demonstrate the next big thing Omos. We saw not one, not two, not three but FOUR women’s matches. We won’t dive into the quality of some of them, we’re just going to appreciate the women getting that kind of exposure on TV. With all that happening, let us look at what else Raw gave us last night in the 5 Biggest Takeaways from Raw;
#5: Jeff Hardy
WWE usually doesn’t listen to their fans, and for good reason. We can tell them what we want all day but by next week, what we want is probably something different than what we did want and it’s a never ending cycle.
Last week the complaints were out in full force when Jeff Hardy was spotted chasing the 24/7 Title. In what is considered death row on WWE Television, the fans had finally snapped with the way Jeff Hardy was being booked and their voice was loud… and apparently heard.
How would WWE respond? By throwing Jeff in a United States Championship match with one of the hottest talents in WWE at the moment, Damian Priest. And instead of having these guys do a quick 3 minute filler match, they allowed them some time to really give us a good dose of Jeff Hardy. Ultimately, he failed in his attempt to capture gold but I think we can all agree that was the right call. But for one night, Jeff got the chance to show he can still be a valuable asset to the show and hopefully the crowd response he got last night from the crowd was enough to give Jeff more opportunities to perform and at the very least put some young talent over with fun matches.
#4: Doudrop-a-lution
Eva Marie has not had the warmest of welcomes since coming back. Whether it be the unfair blaming she got for being hired whilst others were being released to pointing out how bad she is in the ring and how she isn’t worthy of a spot on the roster, the hate has been consistent.
Pairing Piper Nivens with her was for a reason and it the reason was a good one, to introduce Piper and get her over. Unfortunately, the pairing up with Eva was a choice most fans just didn’t buy. Then you change her name to Doudrop and the fans who actually did know her collectively lost their mind.
Doudrop has looked good in a few of the matches where she had a credible opponent and she can easily be believed as a threat in the women’s division. But since the pairing flopped, the interest in Doudrop just isn’t what I was expecting it to be coming out of the program with Eva. But last night, that came to an end. Doudrop squashed Eva Marie again and looks to hopefully be moving on from the whole mess. With both shows needing fresh faces for the champions to feud with, I look forward to Doudrop making her way up the rankings and being a breath of fresh air in the division.
#3: Shayna Breaks Free
NEXT WEEK on #WWERaw@QoSBaszler & @NiaJaxWWE finally meet one-on-one in a heated showdown! pic.twitter.com/y08O8B810Y
— WWE (@WWE) September 14, 2021
FINALLY! The moment we have been waiting for since this team started, Shayna Baszler is finally breaking free from Nia Jax. We have watched the badass who ripped through the woman’s division get nerfed down almost to jobber status, but through it all the fans still have this vision of her as the “Queen of Spades” still.
After screwing over Nia Jax in her Title match against Charlotte, Nia would return the favor last night. Shayna let it be known that she did it because she knew Nia would do the same, and Nia Jax proved her right. Now, they get to go head to head next week on Raw. There is no better time to start the rebuild of Baszler than to have her choke out Nia Jax next week on Raw. Ship her over to Smackdown during the draft so she has some fresh scenery and let the push begin. The women’s division is missing a true badass and they’ve had one under their nose this whole time.
#2: Tag Team Dominance
On paper, when compared to all the other shows during the week, Monday Night Raw might have the worst tag team division. They have some depth but lack of “star power” outside of New Day.. But when you watch the show and see how much they have been making it a point to highlight that division, you could argue that it is on it’s way to having the best tag division on television. For the past 2 months, they have been highlighting teams throughout the show more and more with each passing week.
The tag champs did not perform as a team last night, which is fine. Champions should be saved for special occasions so that when they do actually wrestle on tv, it feels important. But they were still a big part of the main story on the show and that elevates the title’s prestige. I don’t think a lot of people realize the rub those belts are getting by sharing segments with the WWE Champion and what it will do for whoever takes the titles off of Randy and Riddle.
But outside of that, we had 6 tag teams in action last night. I don’t care that they were used in a 6 man tag match and an 8 man tag match, they were showcased on television and that is a lot better than what we have come to expect. And neither one of those multi-man matches were bad. Were they 5 star classics? No, but they were fun to watch and they allowed a team like Mace & T-Bar to keep their momentum going after gaining heat last week. It also allowed Monsoor to show more personality with the New Day and continue the building up of Omos. I know this is a hot take, but I will die on this hill. Now if only they could unify the Raw and Smackdown titles to make them just a little more prestigious, that’s a world I want to live in.
#1: IT’S A NEW DAY, YES IT IS!
BIG E IS THE WWE CHAMPION!
I could leave it at that and it would be enough. Typing those words out feels good. Saying it out loud feels great. It’s been a long time coming and it is rightfully deserved for Big E. Much like they did with Bobby Lashley, they revolved the entire show around the guarantee that Big E made: “I will be cashing in my briefcase tonight.”
Whether it was a reactionary move or to try and pop a rating to combat Monday Night Football, it should not matter. WWE gave the fans an outcome that they have been waiting for, for a very long time. And they didn’t tease something and then ruin it by overbooking nonsense and pissing the fans off. They told you what was going to happen and they delivered and it was beautiful.
And if either of those reasons are true, so what? If it was to pop a rating and it worked, don’t you think that bodes well for Big E? It shows the star power that many have believed he has for quite some time. If it was to combat against AEW, who cares? People have been clamoring for WWE to acknowledge AEW as competition and now that it might be happening, you’re still going to complain and take a shot?
ENJOY THE MOMENT! I have not seen one negative comment about Big E winning last night. It’s all love. That’s what wrestling fans need to enjoy more of. The moments that make you smile and realize why you watch it to begin with and that is exactly what we got last night.
So there you have it, a great episode of Raw. It’s always fun to see a story unfold through the night and end with a happy ending. And with all the love and congratulations going around for Big E, let us not forget Bobby Lashley. Whereas his title reign may not have been the best, he always came across as a fighting champion that was a legit badass. He deserves more credit than he will get.
About Author
