Home News 6 Takeaways From WWE RAW (11/26)

6 Takeaways From WWE RAW (11/26)

Robert Lentini
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6 Takeaways From WWE RAW (11/26)
Photo Credit: WWE.com

The November 26th, 2018 episode of WWE RAW aired live from the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, WI. Here are 6 takeaways from this week’s show:

Braun Strowman Addressed His Injury & Vowed To Get Revenge 

RAW GM Baron Corbin, Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley, and Lio Rush kicked off RAW in the ring. They claimed that Braun Strowman deserved to get beaten down last week and showed footage of the brutal attack.

Strowman was then shown right before his surgery and vowed to return at 100%. Strowman told Lashley, Corbin, and McIntyre that all three of them were going to “get these hands” when he returns to RAW. It was later announced that Curt Hawkins will replace Braun Strowman as Ember Moon’s teammate in the Mixed Match Challenge.

Corbin noted that there was no way that Strowman will be medically cleared before their match at WWE TLC. Baron stated that the match was still on and that he will just win by forfeit and become the permanent GM of RAW. Corbin warned the Superstars in the locker room to start treating him with some respect or he will make their lives difficult on RAW.

The RAW Women’s Championship Match At TLC Has No Momentum

Ronda Rousey will defend her RAW Women’s Championship against Nia Jax at WWE TLC. On tonight’s episode of RAW, Nia Jax came down to the ring alongside Tamina to a chorus of boos from the crowd.

Jax boasted about leading Team RAW to victory at Survivor Series and breaking Becky Lynch’s face two weeks ago. She claimed that “The Man” was no match for “The Facebreaker” and vowed to take the RAW Women’s Championship from Rousey at TLC.

Nia showed highlights of her dominating Ronda Rousey this past June’s MITB PPV. She claimed that is where Ronda’s career went on a downfall and showed footage of Charlotte Flair brutally attacking Rousey at Survivor Series.

Jax mocked Rousey for believing that she is a true champion and went right back to bragging about her recent accomplishments. Nia grinned and said, “the top of the mountain belongs to me”.

Rousey interrupted and came down to the ring as the crowd chanted her name. Ronda complimented Nia on winning the Battle Royal at Evolution to earn a shot at the title. Rousey then vowed to rip Nia’s arm off at TLC and slap Charlotte Flair across the face with it.

Ronda challenged Nia Jax to a match tonight but Nia declined. Tamina and Nia circled Rousey but Natalya sprinted to the ring to make the save. The Riott Squad attacked Natalya from the crowd but Rousey fought them off to end the segment.

At Survivor Series, Ronda Rousey was booed out of the building after being on the receiving end of a vicious attack from Charlotte Flair. On tonight’s show, she was back to being a fan favorite. Jax got some legitimate heat from the crowd for punching Becky in the face and depriving them of the anticipated Lynch vs. Rousey match at Survivor Series.

However, that heat already seems to be fading and Jax is back to getting painfully silent reactions from the crowd. I would have preferred to see Nia Jax attack Rousey from behind tonight rather than this promo. The most notable thing from this segment was Rousey mentioning Charlotte Flair’s name and the RAW Women’s Championship match at TLC already feels like an afterthought.

The Tag Team Division Continues To Be Booked Terribly

The Authors of Pain defended their RAW Tag Team Championships tonight against Bobby Roode & Chad Gable. Drake Maverick took Bobby Roode’s robe from the ringside area and draped it around his shoulder right when the match started.

Maverick then put Roode’s robe on and walked up the entrance ramp. Drake mocked Roode’s pose before jogging backstage. Maverick was then shown on the jumbotron with Roode’s robe in the bathroom. Drake put Roode’s robe in the toilet and urinated on it. AOP capitalized on the distraction and hit the Last Chapter on Roode for the pinfall victory.

In addition to The Revival getting squashed by Lucha House Party tonight, Akam and Rezar retained their titles because of Drake Maverick urinating on Roode’s robe. Long gone are the days of AOP being a dominant force with their manager Paul Ellering leading the way in NXT.

Instead of getting that version of the team, we see Akam and Rezar grunting behind Drake Maverick as he makes pee jokes before a title match. On last week’s SmackDown, The Bar was also made to look like a joke in a throwaway Thanksgiving Feast Fight match. WWE has talented teams on both RAW and SmackDown but they refuse to do anything with them on the main roster.

Seth Rollins Retained In Another Match Against Dolph Ziggler

Seth Rollins issued an open challenge for the Intercontinental Championship tonight on RAW. Rollins claimed that he was done chasing Dean Ambrose around in an effort to find answers. Earlier on RAW, Dean Ambrose said that he was not going to be on RAW tonight because he was getting a series of injections to protect him from the WWE Universe.

Dolph Ziggler accepted Rollins’ challenge and vowed to take his title back. The match went back and forth as the crowd chanted “this is awesome!”. Ziggler set up for the Superkick but Seth didn’t get up off the canvas. Dolph shouted that Rollins didn’t have it anymore and planted him with a DDT. Rollins battled back and connected with the Superplex into the Falcon Arrow for the pinfall victory to retain his Intercontinental Championship.

Seth Rollins and Dolph Ziggler are both tremendous in the ring, so it was no surprise that they put on an entertaining match. The issue is that we have seen this match far too much lately. It was billed as an IC Title match but in reality, it was just a way to kill 30 minutes and get the crowd to chant “this is awesome!”. The only thing that was new here was Rollins picking up a win with the Falcon Arrow.

Alexa Bliss Now Oversees The RAW Women’s Division

Baron Corbin informed Alexa Bliss that she was now in charge of the entire RAW women’s division during tonight’s show.

Bliss then held an open forum so that the WWE Universe could ask Sasha Banks and Bayley whatever questions they want. The first fan asked what they would do change the RAW women’s division going forward.

Bayley said that she is proud of the division and hopes that as Superstars they continue to get opportunities. Sasha Banks told Alexa that she would ship her back to SmackDown. Bliss tried to create a divide between Banks and Bayley but they weren’t having it. Alicia Fox, Dana Brooke, and Mickie James then attacked Banks and Bayley from behind. Bayley and Banks fought back and stood tall to end the segment.

Alexa Bliss is entertaining and a great heel, so it makes sense that she still is a part of RAW despite not being medically cleared to compete. However, this segment didn’t go well at all and was just awkward. I’m also confused as to when Dana Brooke turned heel again.

Baron Corbin Abused His Power To Beatdown Elias & Finn Balor

In the first hour of RAW, Elias was set to face Bobby Lashley in a singles match. Elias had the match won but Lio Rush pulled the official out of the ring. RAW GM Baron Corbin announced that the match was no disqualifications. Corbin, McIntyre, and Lashley then beatdown Elias and it resulted in an easy victory for Lashley.

Baron Corbin battled Finn Balor in the main event of this week’s episode of RAW. Baron grabbed the microphone during the match and announced that this match was now a 2 on 1 Handicap Match and that his partner is Drew McIntyre.

Drew McIntyre quickly hit Balor with the Claymore Kick for the victory. Bobby Lashley joined the party and slammed Balor the canvas. Corbin followed it up with End of Days. McIntyre shouted that Balor was nothing but a boy in a man’s world and hit him with another Claymore Kick.

https://twitter.com/totaldivaseps/status/1067266919563231233

Corbin versuse Balor is another match that we have seen far too much of RAW. I was expecting someone to come out and help Balor out but that was not the case. WWE is trying to make the trio of Corbin, McIntyre, and Lashley seem like an unstoppable force but the crowd really didn’t react when they posed at the end of the show. Time will tell if this leads to anything interesting going forward but tonight was just another forgettable episode of WWE RAW.

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