April 10, 2017
Episode 1246
(aired live)
#RAW
City: Uniondale, NY
Venue: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Commentary: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton
Ring Announcer: Jojo
Intro Video
“Enemies” by Shinedown
Ring Area
After Cole, Saxton, and Graves welcome us to RAW and the Superstar Shakeup, John Cena’s music plays throughout the arena. But just like on SmackDown last week, out comes The Miz and Maryse cosplaying as John Cena and Nikki Bella. Miz/John says he and Maryse/Nikki were going to go to Hollywood, but they stink and Hollywood didn’t want them. So now, they’ve decided to make a home on RAW. As he says that, Dean Ambrose’s music plays.
In the ring Ambrose says he’s happy to see some familiar faces here on RAW. He’s glad that Cena and Nikki beat Miz and Maryse at Wrestlemania because those two are the worst. Miz explains to Ambrose that he’s not really John Cena, he’s The Miz. Since that’s the case, Ambrose hits Miz with Dirty Deeds.
** They should really start a sub-plot where R-Truth is convinced that The Miz is John Cena. It could go on for months! **
Backstage
Sami Zayn asks Kurt Angle if he’s going to be staying on RAW. Angle says SmackDown is very interested in having him. Miz and Maryse walk up and interrupt Zayn. They’re angry that they were attacked upon their arrival on RAW. Zayn is not pleased by the interruption, and in order to avoid an argument, Angle puts Miz in a match with Zayn tonight.
Match 1
New Day (Xavier Woods & Big E) vs The Revival
(referee: Shawn Bennett)
Result: Dash Wilder pins Xavier Woods after a Shatter Machine
Time: 5:17 (1 break)
Match Thoughts
Good match. It was interesting watching New Day fight angry. Woods seemed especially worked up, and his desire for revenge after losing last week and Kofi getting injured played directly into how the match progressed and affected the outcome of the match. The finish wasn’t the prettiest, but it was quite effective and believable.
Backstage
Neville looks angry. Charly Caruso walks up and asks him about having to face Austin Aries again after he won the number one contendership last week on 205 Live. Neville says Aries isn’t on the Neville level.
TJ Perkins walks up and says Neville should be careful what he says. He might just have to eat his words. Neville tells Perkins to look at what he’s become since losing the Cruiserweight Title. He’s been overlooked. Neville says he respects Perkins though. Aries then walks up and calls Neville is a liar. Perkins doesn’t appear to know what to think.
Ring Area
Curt Hawkins has arrived on RAW and makes a reference to the Louisiana Purchase. He wants to celebrate his return to RAW, but the Big Show comes out instead. Hawkins goes in for a hug, but Big Show simply punches him and walks away.
** And with that, I expect we’ll see Hawkins on Main Event from now on. **
Match 2
Austin Aries vs TJ Perkins
(referee: Rod Zapata; guest commentary: Neville)
Result: TJ Perkins wins via pinfall with a small package
Time: 4:37
Match Thoughts
Good match. It wasn’t super flashy, but it was very solid. I liked the finish as well. It was simple, but it worked nicely.
Ring Area
After the match, as Aries is looking up the ramp at Neville, Perkins attacks Aries from behind and hits a Detonation Kick.
Backstage
Seth Rollins walks. He greets Enzo and Cass, and he gives Cass a hug.
Ring Area
Seth Rollins makes his way to the ring. Rollins says it feels good to be in the ring and on his own two feet. He was in physical pain after his match with Triple H, but mentally he was at peace. He slayed the king of kings. He thanks the crowd for giving him a second chance and says that he’s just getting started on RAW. He has some scores to settle, such as one with Samoa Joe. He also wants the Universal Title, but he feels he might not get many opportunities because of his involvement with Stephanie falling through a table at Wrestlemania.
Rollins says that Steph doesn’t deal with failure well, and everytime she sees him she’ll be reminded of her and Triple H’s failure. Rollins says it might be easier if he just goes to SmackDown. But he took the easy way once before. He won’t do it again. Therefore, he’s not leaving RAW without a fight. Kurt Angle then makes his way to the ring.
Angle tells Rollins that it’s true, Steph wants Rollins gone. But Rollins’ performance at Wrestlemania made Angle want to keep him. As long as Angle is GM, Rollins has a home on RAW. Angle’s music plays, but as it looks like the segment is ending, Samoa Joe attacks Rollins. After a bit of a brawl, Rollins manages to fight Rollins off.
** I feel like Rollins was making a huge deal out of nothing. This whole segment could have been avoided if he just had one brief conversation with Angle. LIke what Sami Zayn has been doing. But no, Rollins had to be all dramatic about it. **
Backstage
Chary Caruso welcomes Kevin Owens. She asks Owens what he thinks about the Superstar Shakeup. Owens doesn’t care what’s going to happen because the cream always rises to the top. He imagines Jericho would like to go to SmackDown to get away from Owens though. Caruso then asks Owens about Ambrose and the US Title. Owens says he will “beat the Hell” out of Ambrose if he doesn’t show him the proper respect.
Match 3
Charlotte Flair vs Nia Jax
(referee: John Cone)
Result: Nia Jax wins via pinfall after a Samoan drop
Time: 5:59
Match Thoughts
This was okay, but I wasn’t really into it. Some of the moves and interactions looked a little less than crisp, such as when it looked like Jax dropped Charlotte mostly on her head after a shoulder breaker. The match was slow and not terribly interesting. The crowd being quiet probably didn’t help, but the action was a little plodding. The finish was underwhelming and kind of expected considering the direction they look to be going with Jax.
Video
A special look at Finn Balor.
Match 4
Jinder Mahal vs Finn Balor
(referee: Darrick Moore)
Result: Finn Balor wins via pinfall after a Coup de Grace
Time: 2:46
Match Thoughts
A pretty good yet short match, but it was little more than an exhibition for Balor. Mahal looked like he was trying to make the best of the opportunity, and he looked good, but he might have been a little overzealous with one of his elbows. He clocked Balor hard which dropped Balor face-first own to the mat. Balor looked a little loopy for the rest of the match, but he still managed to finish well.
Ring Area
After the match, Bray Wyatt appears on the Tron and announces that RAW is his new home. He’s going to be watching Balor.
Video
It’s announced that Apollo Crews, Kalisto, Heath Slater, and Rhyno are all joining RAW.
Match 5
The Miz w/ Maryse vs Sami Zayn
(referee: Shawn Bennett)
Result: Sami Zayn wins via pinfall with a wheelbarrow victory roll
Time: 4:25 (1 break)
Match Thoughts
This was a fun match. They went slightly against expectations with this this one, which I liked. The action was nice, and the finish was good.
Backstage
Michael Cole has a sit-down interview with Roman Reigns. Reigns says that he respects The Undertaker, and his victory of Taker at Wrestlemania was bittersweet. As Reigns is talking, Braun Strowman appears and attacks. He throws Reigns all over the backstage area and powerslams him onto a rolling case. He finishes Reigns off by rolling another case into Reigns while he’s pinned against a wall. ** It was pretty obvious that the case didn’t actually smash into Reigns. Reigns’ body didn’t really move when it was supposed to have hit him. The case slammed into something just in front of Reigns, but they did a good job of hiding it and removing it. **
As Reigns is being stretchered away, Strowman returns and throws the stretcher off an elevated platform onto concrete. ** There was an obvious edit in this segment, so Reigns clearly wasn’t on the stretcher, but the edit was done fairly well. Also, why were so many random people hanging out by the trucks? They were obviously just there for reactions, but it was kind of silly. **
As Reigns is being loaded into an ambulance, Strowman once again appears, saying “I’m not finished with you!” He closes the door to the ambulance, then pushes it over on its side. ** Again, it’s clear that Reigns wasn’t in the ambulance, but again, it was still a fun segment. The whole segment kind of became a comedy segment with Strowman repeatedly appearing and screaming just when we thought it was all over. **
** Michael Cole, as the commentators tend to do, oversells the attack by saying he hasn’t seen anything like that in 20 years. I remember a moment when two hardcore legends got shoved off the stage in a dumpster that compares to this. And an exploding limo. And a bunch of other ridiculously violent stuff. Overselling stuff like that makes me enjoy the segment less. **
Match 6
Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows & Shining Stars vs Cesaro & Sheamus & The Hardy Boyz (RAW Tag Champs)
(referee: Rod Zapata)
Result: Jeff Hardy pins Epico after a Twist of Fate
Time: 4:17 (1 break)
Match Thoughts
This was short but fun. The action was kept pretty fast-paced, mostly due to the fact that so many guys were in and around the ring. IT was kind of an exhibition for the Hardys really. I think they could have done more to build up the match between the Hardys and Cesaro and Sheamus, and they could have done more to show that Gallows and Anderson are still hanging around, but it was still a fun enough match.
** Oh yeah, and Elias Samson was spotted walking around the stage area prior to the match. Ugh. **
Backstage
Dana Brooke reads a book titled “How to Be Your Own Protege.” Emma walks up and tells Dana to “come on.” Dana says that she’d gotten better since Emma has been away, and she’s learned to stand on her own two feet. Emma doesn’t seem to like that.
Ring Area
Sasha Banks makes her way to the ring. She says she has some unfinished business, but before she gets to that she introduces her “best friend” Bayley. In the ring, Bayley thanks the fans for sticking with her and believing in her. Sasha congratulates Bayley, and it appears as if she’s about to ask for a title shot when Alexa Bliss comes out and heads to the ring.
Alexa says that Bayley and Sasha are nauseating and weird. She announces that she’s on RAW to win and dominate, but as she’s talking Mickie James interrupts and heads to the ring. Mickie reminds everyone that she’s a six time women’s champ, but Nia Jax comes out ad attacks everyone.
** Alexa and Mickie are welcome additions, but the push it appears Nia Jax is poised to embark upon is not nearly as interesting to me. **
Match 7
Kevin Owens (US Champ) vs Dean Ambrose (IC Champ)
(referee: John Cone)
Result: Dean Ambrose wins via pinfall after Dirty Deeds
Time: 10:15 (1 break)
Match Thoughts
Good match, and a nice main event. This was a straightforward, rather violent match. They didn’t use weapons, but they did hit each other with some nicely rough looking moves. There were no shenanigans going on, even though both guys are champs. I liked it.
Ring Area
After the match, Chris Jericho comes out and heads toward the ring. He rushes Owens and hits him with a Code Breaker to end the show.
Show Impressions
A pretty good show. I liked the 205 Live stuff. The Superstar Shakeup didn’t feel particularly exciting, not like a draft would, but it was fine. This post-Wrestlemania season has been a little chaotic so far. It seems we’ll have to wait until probably after Payback until we can really start to see where things are headed.
Match of the Night
Kevin Owens vs Dean Ambrose
Just a straightforward, solid match. Can’t go wrong with that.