Samoa Joe and Goldberg. Not in the ring at the same time, but they clearly were the main hype for the near future. Goldberg facing Kevin Owens at Fastlane, also accepting the challenge from Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania.
Please let this not be a repeat of WrestleMania XX.
RAW kicks off with Samoa Joe in a suit and tie. He comes out at the behest of Mick Foley and Stephanie McMahon to officially sign his RAW Contract. While Foley wonders about the motives, Joe gives a short but passionate promo about how it has taken 18 years for this moment. The crowd cheers, with the exception of those who chant “you sold out” because, it’s still real to them, dammit. Roman Reigns buzzkills the segment by blathering about him being the “big dog” and “marking his territory” and all sorts of stupid. Foley books Joe vs. Reigns tonight.
Nia Jax defeats Bayley
Another dominant showing by Jax, until Bayley’s offensive gets the attention of Charlotte who interferes, allowing Jax to gain the win. Okay, I’m waiting for the moment where Foley says “well, since Jax has won so many matches, she is the #1 contender.”
Braun Strowman defeats four jobbers
Yep. One runs away. This is all sorts of stupid. After the match Strowman demands more from Foley, so he gets Roman Reigns at Fastlane. OK.
Akira Tozawa defeats Drew Gulak
Oh, this was a thing of beauty. Gulak served his purpose as big guy for Tozawa to chop down. I love this guy.
Post match, Brian Kendrick congratulates Tozawa. Huh.
In the ring, Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho congratulate each other on their championships, and propose a title vs. title match at WrestleMania. Owens is not too keen on the idea.
I love how there are slightly subtle teases for Jericho to slowly inch his way closer to the Universal Championship.
The segment is interrupted by a crowd eruption for Goldberg. He cuts a much better promo tonight, first accepting the challenge from Brock Lesnar for WrestleMania, then challenges them to a 2-on-1 Handicap match. Then, goes one further, and challenges Owens for the Universal Championship at Fastlane. Jericho is about to put Goldberg on the list, but he snatches it away and signs his name himself. Funny stuff. Jericho then tells Goldberg he could face Owens at Fastlane, prompting the champ to lose it. Backstage, Owens continues to lose it.
Anderson and Gallows retain the WWE RAW Tag Team Championships against Cesaro and Sheamus by disqualification
Pretty decent match, ends when Gallows attacks the ringside visitors, Enzo and Cass, which prompts a fight and the DQ. Lame end.
Recap of the Triple H/Seth Rollins feud, with the sudden arrival of Samoa Joe. Triple H calls himself the “creator” and when he meant Rollins will meet the “destroyer” he was referring to Samoa Joe. Joe = Destroyer. Makes sense.
Seth Rollins’ WrestleMania appearance is in doubt.
The New Day defeats The Shining Stars
Pre-match promo by the New Day runs down Primo and Epico’s gimmick while talking about all the great things they brought, like unicorns, Booty-Os, and what’s next… Ice Cream?
If they bring back the WWE Ice Cream bars, CM Punk might get mad. It was his idea after all.
Rock ‘n’ Roll Express Announced as next inductees into the WWE Hall of Fame
Chris Jericho defeats Sami Zayn to retain the United States Championship
Really good match, but with Kevin Owens at ringside, the odds remain stacked. Zayn hit all his trademarks, but then Jericho locked in the walls. Zayn gets to the ropes, but while Jericho argues with the ref, Owens hits Zayn with a superkick, which allows Jericho to hit the codebreaker.
My guess is this feud is not over.
Backstage: Charlotte pokes fun at Sasha Banks on her injuries. Meh.
Austin Aries announces with Neville, that Rich Swann is injured so a new contender will qualify tomorrow night on 205 Live, Jack Gallagher, TJ Perkins, Noam Dar, Cedric Alexander, and Tony Nese. For tonight, we get a six man tag.
Gallagher, Perkins, and Alexander defeat Neville, Dar, and Nese after Neville bails and the faces rally for the win.
Next Week: Emmalina. For real!
Backstage, Jericho is so grateful for Owens, they will hold a Festival of Friendship next week on RAW.
Samoa Joe defeats Roman Reigns
Joe did really well in his first match on RAW, but I can’t be the only to have noticed Reigns was slower than usual tonight. Sure, he was the one taking the beating, but something looked off with him. Crowd firmly in favor of Joe. Thanks to a distraction from Braun Strowman, a swinging Sambo Suplex Slam Something Something by Samoa Joe gets the win over Roman Reigns. I am a bit disappointed, Joe doesn’t get a clean win on his first match.
Overall, not a bad show, but Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho stole the show tonight.
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