By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Raw Hits
Liv Morgan vs. Becky Lynch in a steel cage match for the Women’s World Championship: A good main event with the expected Dominik Mysterio involvement to help Morgan win the match. I don’t know what the future holds for Lynch contractually, but the timing is right for her to go on hiatus. The live crowds have not been as hot for her in recent months, so taking a break and giving the fans some time to miss her could be just what her character needs.
Bronson Reed vs. Otis: The match was fine, but the Hit is more about everything involving Chad Gable and his abuse of the Alpha Academy members. Gable is killing it as the taskmaster coach and it’s great to see after all those years of “shoosh” silliness. Sami Zayn is the perfect person to attempt to talk sense into Otis given his own history with The Bloodline.
Ilja Dragunov vs. Ricochet: A good match before Bron Breakker attacked Ricochet to cause the no-contest. The finish worked in terms of putting heat on Breakker while also creating the need for a rematch. Breakker is off to a strong start on the main roster. Adam Pearce showed nice range by chastising Breakker only to immediately show fear and intimidation once Breakker stared him down.
Braun Strowman vs. JD McDonagh: I’m not sure how well Strowman fits in the post Vince McMahon era of WWE, but this was a solid match that included outside interference from Carlito and Finn Balor. I could have done without the meathead Strowman character chasing around McDonagh all night, though ultimately it played a big part in the main event finish.
Lyra Valkyria vs. Kairi Sane: A bounce back win for Valkyria coming off her loss in the Queen of the Ring finals. The match could have used more time, but the end result was key in setting up Iyo Sky’s backstage meltdown over the latest Damage CTRL loss.
Rey Mysterio vs. Carlito: A decent match. It was wild to hear that it had been twenty years since their last singles match together. The post match angle with Damian Priest hitting his finisher and then staring daggers at Finn Balor and Carlito was well done.
“AOP” Akam and Rezar vs. Julius Creed and Brutus Creed: A quick match that resulted in AOP going over thanks to a distraction created by Scarlett running Ivy Nile into the ring post. All signs point to the Creeds joining Chad Gable at some point, so it’s fine if they take a loss before are rebooted. The Final Testament faction is off to a slow start as a whole, but AOP feel like players in the tag team division.
WWE Raw Misses
Liv Morgan kissing Dominik Mysterio does not air: I can’t even imagine the fallout had this occurred under the previous owner. I’m not sure what happened or who is to blame, but Morgan planting a kiss on Dom at ringside after the show went off the air was a big moment to miss. On a side note, don’t let the lopsided Hit to Miss count fool you into thinking this was a great show. It was a good episode with several storyline developments, but most of the matches were forgettable.
OH. MY. GOD. 😲😲😲😲😲😲😲#WWERaw pic.twitter.com/FVOnLCjtSl
— WWE (@WWE) May 28, 2024
The kiss made it to air in Canada.
“It was a good episode with several storyline developments, but most of the matches were forgettable.”
Which is what good wrestling TV has been for most of the last 50 years.