Home News WWE RAW Recap & Reaction (4/10): Superstar Shake-Up

WWE RAW Recap & Reaction (4/10): Superstar Shake-Up

Robert Lentini
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WWE RAW Recap & Reaction (4/10): Superstar Shake-Up

This week’s episode of Monday Night Raw kicked off The Miz and Maryse dressed up as John Cena and Nikki Bella. The Miz and Maryse were quickly interrupted by Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose who will also be joining Monday Night Raw. Ambrose laid out The Miz with the Dirty Deeds and celebrated in the ring. Monday Night Raw is now the new home for the Intercontinental Championship.

Reaction: Dean Ambrose has needed to hit the reset button for awhile now, hopefully switching brands allows him to do that. It will be interesting to see if the United States Championship moves over to Smackdown now that the IC Title is on Raw.

The Revival vs New Day

Kofi Kingston was not ringside for this match due to his injury. The Revival controlled the first few minutes of the match and Raw went to a commercial break. When Raw returned, New Day was in control of the match. Xavier Woods hit a massive Elbow Drop on Dawson for a two count. Dash and Dawson then planted Xavier Woods with a Shatter Machine for the victory.

Winners: The Revival

Reaction: That makes two victories in a row for Dash and Dawson over the New Day. The Revival are a terrific tag team. I hope WWE capitalizes on their talent and books them as a dominant team.

TJ Perkins confronted Neville backstage. Neville said that he is the only one in the locker room and stated that Perkins’ career has become a joke. Neville convinced TJ that Aries has been given all the opportunities that Perkins should have. Austin Aries then joined the party and stated that Neville was lying. Perkins didn’t respond and walked away.

Curt Hawkins announced that he was joining the Raw roster. Big Show came down to the ring and hit the KO Punch and knocked Hawkins out.

Austin Aries vs TJ Perkins

Neville joined commentary for this match and stated that he is looking forward to torturing Austin Aries in their Cruiserweight Championship match at WWE Payback. Perkins controlled the match earlier and starting dabbing in the ring. The crowd didn’t like that and started to boo as Aries laughed in the ring. Aries connected with a Dropkick and posed on top of the ring ropes. Aries then mocked Perkins and dabbed and the crowd cheered. Aries connected with an Elbow Drop for a two count.

Aries hit a Neckbreaker across the second rope and Perkins fell out of the ring. Neville then came down to the entrance ramp as Aries posed on top of the barricade. The referee was counting in the ring and Aries made it back in the ring in time. Perkins then rolled Aries up for the victory. TJ then attacked Aries after the match and beat him down. Perkins connected with the Detonation Kick on Aries and left him in the ring. Neville laughed on the entrance ramp as the crowd chanted “you still suck” at Perkins.

Winner: TJ Perkins

Reaction: Perkins received an overwhelmingly negative reaction tonight and that is actually a good thing. He has been completely irrelevant on Raw and 205 Live. Any reaction is a good reaction and hopefully WWE runs with it. I hope he dabs 100 times in the ring during his next match.

Seth Rollins came down to the ring and the crowd chanted his name. Rollins stated that he woke up the morning after Wrestlemania 33 and was in the most pain of his life. Rollins thanked the crowd for giving him a second chance and for having his back during his match with Triple H. Rollins rolled video of Stephanie McMahon falling through a table at Wrestlemania 33. The crowd started chanting “thank you Seth!”. Rollins said that Stephanie McMahon will come back to work soon and the easy way out would be to go to Smackdown. Rollins stated that he was not leaving Monday Night Raw without a fight.

Raw GM Kurt Angle came down to the ring. Angle said that Stephanie McMahon has made it clear that she wants Rollins off of Monday Night Raw. Angle complimented Rollins for being the one-legged man who won an ass kicking contest in his match against Triple H. Angle said that as long as he is Raw GM, Rollins has a home on Monday Night Raw. Samoa Joe attacked Rollins from behind. Angle separated the two for a moment but the brawl continued. Rollins kicked Joe in the face twice and knocked him out of the ring. Rollins challenged Joe to get back in the ring but Joe retreated.

Reaction: This a solid promo. The crowd is heavily behind Rollins. I’m glad he is staying on Raw because I think Rollins and Samoa Joe can tear the house down when they eventually have a match.

Kevin Owens was interviewed backstage. Owens bragged about defeating Chris Jericho at Wrestlemania 33 and simply dismissed the Superstar Shake-Up. Owens stated that he is the United States Champion and that makes him the face of America. Owens was asked about Dean Ambrose joining Raw and Owens laughed it off. Owens stated that Monday Night Raw is the “Kevin Owens show”.

Charlotte vs Nia Jax

Nia controlled the match earlier. Charlotte tried to fight back several times but Jax stopped her momentum. Charlotte finally got in some momentum and hit the Natural Selection out of nowhere for a two count. Charlotte was in disbelief that Nia kicked out. Charlotte knocked Nia out of the ring and hit her with a Moonsault off the top rope. Back in the ring, Nia hit a Samoan Drop for a three count.

Winner: Nia Jax

Reaction: Nia Jax is being booked as a dominant force and that is great for the Women’s Division. The problem I have is that Nia seems to mess up a ton in the ring. She dropped Charlotte on her head in the beginning of the match. During Charlotte’s Moonsault, Nia didn’t catch her at all. Charlotte’s legs barely hit Nia and then Charlotte fell face first to the floor.

https://twitter.com/FlippyShit/status/851606495028535301

Finn Balor vs Jinder Mahal

Mahal got in some offense but Balor wound up dominating the match. Balor hit the Coupe De Grace for the victory in a quick match.

After the match, Bray Wyatt appeared on the Jumbotron and announced that he was joining the Raw roster. Wyatt also revealed that his match with Randy Orton for the WWE Championship will now take place April 30th at WWE Payback.

Winner: Finn Balor

Reaction: It is great to see Balor wrestling on Monday Night Raw again. This match wasn’t anything special. Bray Wyatt switching from Smackdown to Raw is interesting. WWE really dropped the ball with his WWE Championship reign. Maybe a change of scenery will help him out. I’m worried that it might be too little too late.

Sami Zayn vs The Miz

This was a short back and forth match. Sami Zayn stole a victory by countering a Skull Crushing Finale into a roll up for the victory.

Winner: Sami Zayn

Roman Reigns was interviewed backstage by Michael Cole. Reigns started to discuss his victory over The Undertaker at Wrestlemania 33 but was attacked by Braun Strowman. Strowman beat him down and then slammed a cart into Reigns’ head. Strowman walked away as Reigns was about to be stretchered out of the arena. The crowd chanted “thank you Strowman” throughout the attack. The crowd also chanted “you deserve it!” as Reigns was placed on the stretcher. Strowman then took control of the stretcher and rolled him off a ramp. The crowd erupted as Reigns hit the floor.  Reigns was then loaded into the ambulance and Strowman once again showed up. Strowman punched Reigns in the face several times and then flipped the ambulance over.

Reaction: This was great. It was absolutely absurd when he flipped the ambulance but I loved every second of it. It is about time WWE made Strowman look like a badass again.

Shining Stars, Anderson & Gallows vs Hardy Boyz, Sheamus & Cesaro

“The Drifter” Elias Samson from NXT was shown walking by the announce table with his guitar before the match. Jeff Hardy hit Poetry in Motion on everyone outside the ring. Back in the ring, Matt Hardy hit the Twist of Fate and Jeff Hardy hit a Swanton Bomb on Primo for the victory.

Winners: Hardy Boyz, Sheamus & Cesaro

Dana Brooke was shown reading a book entitled “How to be your own protege”. Emma showed up and demanded Dana accompany her to the ring. Dana said no and that she wasn’t going to rely on anyone else anymore.

Sasha Banks came down to the ring and introduced Bayley. Bayley joined Sasha in the ring and thanked the WWE Universe for believing in her. Sasha congratulated Bayley on achieving her Wrestlemania moment but claimed that moment was over. Sasha was about to challenge Bayley for her Raw Women’s Championship but Alexa Bliss interrupted. Alexa Bliss came down to the ring and received a great reaction from the crowd.

Bliss called Sasha Banks and Bayley pathetic and the crowd cheered. Alexa Bliss announced that she was now on Raw and that she is going to take over the Raw Women’s division. Mickie James then joined the party and announced that she was also joining the Raw roster. Mickie James warned Alexa Bliss that her nightmare has just begun on Monday Night Raw. Nia Jax then attacked Mickie James from behind. Nia then beatdown everyone else and raised the Raw Women’s Championship above her heard.

Reaction: The Raw roster is looking great. Alexa Bliss and Mickie James are two tremendous additions to the Raw Women’s division. It has been rumored that Charlotte will be joining the Smackdown roster. That rumor certainly has to become a reality. If not, the Smackdown Women’s division looks very weak compared to Monday Night Raw’s roster.

Kevin Owens vs Dean Ambrose

Owens controlled the beginning of the match and Raw went to a commercial break. When Raw returned, Owens was still in control and had a Chinlock applied in the middle of the ring. Owens had the Chinlock locked in for a couple of minutes and taunted Ambrose the entire time. Ambrose eventually broke the hold but Owens immediately launched him out of the ring.

Owens followed Ambrose out of the ring and slammed him into the ring post. Back in the ring, Owens went for a Senton but Ambrose got his knees up. Ambrose then sent Owens out of the ring and connected with a Suicide Dive. Ambrose fell over the barricade and into the WWE Universe. The crowd started to chant “Dean!” as the action returned to the ring. Ambrose went for Dirty Deeds but Owens blocked it. Ambrose connected with a Neckbreaker. Owens battled back and went for a Cannonball but Ambrose blocked it and hung Owens up on the top rope. Ambrose then hit a massive Clothesline and Owens fell to the mat. Ambrose went for a pinfall but Owens powered out at two.

Ambrose launched himself onto Owens outside the ring and connected with an elbow to the face. Back in the ring, Ambrose leaped off the top turnbuckle but Owens kicked him in the ribs. Owens then slammed Ambrose to the mat for a two count. Owens went for the Pop-Up Powerbomb but Ambrose blocked it. Owens connected with a Superkick but Ambrose got back to his feet and hit Dirty Deeds for the victory.

After the match, Chris Jericho attacked Owens in the ring. Jericho hit a Codebreaker on Owens and posed in the ring. Raw went off the air as the crowd chanted “Y2J!”.

Winner: Dean Ambrose

Reaction: This match was solid and Raw was an entertaining show overall. There was a bunch of talent that made their way from Smackdown to Monday Night Raw. It will be interesting to see which Superstars from Raw join the Smackdown roster tomorrow night. AJ Styles has been rumored to join Monday Night Raw but he did not appear on the show tonight.

What did you think of this week’s episode of Monday Night Raw? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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