SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW “ALT PERSPECTIVE” REPORT
APRIL 18, 2022
BUFFALO, NY AT KEYBANK CENTER
AIRED LIVE ON USA NETWORK
Commentators: Jimmy Smith, Byron Saxton, Jerry “The King” Lawler
Ring Announcer: Mike Rome
Tonight after WWE Raw, join Wade Keller live with guest co-host Tom Stoup to break down the show with live callers and emails.
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-Monday Night Raw opened this week with a video recap of Cody and Seth’s promo from last week.
-Live in the arena, Seth Rollins made his entrance as Raw kicked off from the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY. The announcers welcomed us to the show as Seth laughed and danced down the ramp. Jerry “The King” Lawler once again filled in for Corey Graves this week on commentary.
We got a graphic and announcement that Cody Rhodes would face Seth Rollins once again at WrestleMania Backlash. Seth got on the mic and welcomed us to “Monday Night Rollins”. He said it was a party out here tonight and he didn’t want to party alone. He then extended an invitation to Cody Rhodes to come down to the ring for a chat.
The lights went out and Cody Rhodes made his entrance. Cody’s theme music faded out and there was a decent Cody chant from fans in the arena.
Seth called Cody the man of the hour and asked him how it felt to be on top of the world. Cody said this all felt so familiar. He referenced being in the same ring with Seth Rollins in this city. Cody called Buffalo “Rhodes Country”. (I believe this was a reference to Cody and Goldust defeating The Shield for the WWE Tag Team Championships years ago).
Seth went to speak and Cody interrupted by gesturing to the crowd and getting a pop. Seth told him not to do that to him again. Seth went to speak a second time and Cody did the same thing, posing and drawing a reaction from the Buffalo audience.
Seth grew frustrated and said how he was about to compliment Cody, the Rhodes family, and the journey Cody went on to make himself a bigger name and ultimately return to WWE as “The American Nightmare.” Instead, Seth told Cody that it was him who made Cody a star in one night by sharing the ring with him at WrestleMania this year. Cody said let’s dispense with the pleasantries and get to the point.
Seth said at WrestleMania, Cody had an unfair advantage. He told Cody he came in as Mr. McMahon’s surprise opponent, leaving Seth unprepared and that it ultimately cost him the match. Rollins then brought up the audience believing after Cody’s WrestleMania win that Rhodes was better than Seth Rollins.
Seth went on to say that he walks, talks and dresses better than Cody. Seth ended his speech stating the biggest reason he was better than Cody Rhodes was that he has been to the mountaintop and won a world championship in WWE.
Cody said Seth had been a world champion four times, while he himself had never done it. He told Seth they needed a neutral party to find out who the better man was. Cody then asked the crowd in Buffalo if they thought he was better than Seth Rollins. The crowd cheered, eventually starting a mild “Yes” chant.
Seth commanded the fans to shut up. He yelled at Cody that if he thinks it’s so easy to compete against a surprise opponent, why doesn’t Cody face one himself tonight on Monday Night Raw? Cody told Seth emphatically that he did not return to WWE to run from challenges and accepted.
(Cate’s Analysis: Decent promo to start the show. With this being Cody’s third week back on Raw, he’s finally settling in as a regular on the show. Based on what we have seen out of Cody since he’s been back in WWE, I think the reaction he’s getting from the crowd is as good as anyone could ask for. I’m not saying he’s going to ever reach the heights of say John Cena, but his support from the fanbase is only going to come by building a solid body of work week after week. That work is just as important on the microphone as it is in the ring. The rematch with Rollins will be good, but it’s also not that exciting. Seth is an incredible wrestler, but WWE leans too much on rematches to extend feuds, especially after WrestleMania, so it’s hard to fault either Cody or Seth if this starts to become a stale narrative sooner rather than later.)
-We cut to the announcers who plugged matches for the night, including Finn Balor defending the United States Championship against Austin Theory, the two weddings , and RK-Bro against the Street Prophets.
-Back on the entrance ramp, WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Naomi & Sasha Banks made their way to the ring. We got a graphic for their title defense against Rhea Ripley and Liv Morgan and cut to commercial.
(1) NAOMI & SASHA BANKS vs. LIV MORGAN & RHEA RIPLEY – Women’s Tag Team Title match
Rhea and Sasha started the title match off. Ripley quickly took control with some dropkicks and corner offense. She tagged in Liv and the two hit a double-team maneuver, with Morgan securing a two-count. Liv then tried for a springboard attack off the second rope on Sasha, but Banks countered and tagged in Naomi. They nailed Liv with a unique drop stomp tag move, which led to Banks hitting a super kick as Naomi got a two count on Morgan. Liv was knocked out of the ring, then driven into the ring post by the champions.
Rhea Ripley got involved on the outside and helped even the score against the dominating team of Banks and Naomi. Ripley drove Banks into the barricade as we zoomed in on a dazed Sasha and went to break.
Back from the commercial, Rhea had Naomi in a submission hold in the center of the ring. Naomi broke from the hold, only to be knocked down to the mat by Ripley. Rhea made the tag to Liv, and Morgan entered the match. Her and Ripley hit a top rope double-team attack, with Liv making two pin fall attempts following the move.
Naomi and Liv battled back and forth, with Morgan hitting a powerbomb after the assist from Ripley. Rhea hit a Riptide on Naomi and got a very close two count on, but was interrupted by Banks just in the nick of time.
Gaining control, the champions knocked Morgan out of the ring. Sasha hit a Codebreaker on Ripley, who then took a full-nelson style drop by Naomi, leading Sasha to hook both legs on Rhea to secure the three count and the victory.
WINNER and still WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions – Naomi and Sasha Banks at 9:00.
(Cate’s Analysis: This was fine. Some good spots and interesting move combinations, but nothing special.)
-After the match, Liv and Rhea argued in the ring. Rhea, clearly having enough, screamed at Liv that Morgan had failed her. Liv went to walk away and Ripley attacked Morgan from behind. Seething with anger, Ripley got Liv Morgan up again and slammed her with a Riptide. Rhea made her exit as the referee checked on Liv.
(Cate’s Analysis: This team has run its course and Rhea needs to get back to a prominent role as a single’s wrestler. This is a step in the right direction. Not sure how Liv Morgan does on her own without Ripley. I could see her paired in another tag team if creative doesn’t find something good for her in singles.)
– Replays aired of Sonya Deville attacking Bianca Belair last week and revealing Sonya was the next opponent for the WWE Raw Women’s Champion.
-Sonya Deville made her entrance. Boos from the crowd rang out in Buffalo. The announcers wondered what the Raw GM had in store for Belair as we went to break.
-Back on Raw, we got graphics celebrating WWE’s return to Buffalo, NY.
-We got a recap of the Liv-Rhea breakup from earlier. Backstage, Rhea looked defeated and exhausted. When asked for comment, she asked what entitles anyone to an explanation.
-Back in the ring, Sonya said she had been hearing chatter all week that she had abused her power. She told the crowd that she was a competitor. She stated she was forced into the position of authority figure until she could find her way back to being a WWE superstar. Sonya said she made the most of her opportunity in her authority role. She went on to say Belair impressed her at WrestleMania and that she wanted to win the Raw Women’s Championship off of the best. She said Bianca wanted a challenger and she gave her one. She ended her promo stating that her attack on the Raw Women’s Champion wasn’t personal, just business.
Bianca Belair’s music hit and the Raw Women’s Champion made her entrance and moved towards the ring with purpose. Deville cut off Belair and told her she is still an authority figure and that Bianca has to keep her hands off of her. Bianca offered to have a match with Sonya tonight, but Deville said she wouldn’t dare have a match this important to her in a “rusted out suburb” of New York, like Buffalo.
Deville talked some more trash and suggested they have their match in Bianca’s hometown next week. Belair had enough and set Deville up for the EST, only for Sonya to warn her again on the mic mid move. This led to Bianca dropping her to the mat and exiting as her music played. Belair stared down Deville to end the segment.
(Cate’s Analysis: I like this turn for Sonya Deville. If she can back up her promos in the ring, we could have another woman’s talent to add to the championship match rotation. Sonya was never featured especially well as a wrestler, so I’m interested to see her return to the ring in a few weeks.)
-Veer made his entrance for singles competition as Raw went to commercial.
-Back in the arena, Vee stood in the ring with a local wrestler from b
(2) VEER vs JEFF BROOKS
-Veer dominated Buffalo local talent Jeff Brooks with a shove to the corner and some quick offense. He threw Brooks around the ring and grunted and shouted. Brooks went for a comeback, but was shoved across the ring by Veer. Veer hit a big sidewalk slam, followed by a devastating clothesline. He punished Brooks quickly to the mat, locked in his Cervical Clutch submission and got the win.
WINNER: Veer by submission in 1:30.
(Cate’s Analysis: Veer is fine. I’m mildly entertained, but like Wade has said on his shows since the debut, this just feels like been there done that big man heel territory.)
-Backstage, Adam Pierce was on the phone with WWE higher ups and was interrupted by Sonya Deville. Deville wanted justice for Belair’s attack, while Pierce advised Sonya to consider her own actions of late. Pierce said Belair would be fined for the attack, only for Belair to show up and reveal the fine was only $1. Pierce told Deville he did his job by the book and walked off.
-Kevin Owens made his entrance to the ring as we got a graphic for an edition of The KO Show with guest Ezekial.
-Back from commercials and we got replays from Veer’s squash match. Backstage, Jeff Brooks was shown writhing in pain being wheeled out on a stretcher.
-In the ring, Kevin Owens welcomed the audience to The Kevin Owens Show. Alpha Academy’s Chad Gable sat with a laptop at a desk in the ring. KO reminded us that he hates liars and was out to prove his guest Ezekial was indeed the former guitar playing Elias. He told the crowd Ezekial would be subjected to a lie detector test, administered by Chad Gable, who would also face Ezekial in one-on-one competition following the test. Kevin Owens introduced Gable as the smartest man in the WWE.
Gable threw out a “a-thank yooooou” to Kevin Owens for having him back on The KO Show. Chad assured KO he would remain objective. He told Owens it was money well spent bringing him on the show, and that if he couldn’t get the answers out of Ezekial, he would beat them out of him after in a match. KO introduced Ezekial as “Elias” as the shaved face superstar made his way to the ring.
KO and Ezekial argued back and forth as Owens grew frustrated. Ezekiel said before he takes the test, he wanted to ask Buffalo “Who wants to hear Zeke speak?”. Gable hooked up Ezekial to the lie detector and asked the crowd to “shoooooosh”.
Gable carried on with some basic questions (“Is the sky blue?” “Is tonight Monday?”). Chad went on a tangent about Gable Stevenson embarrassing him at WrestleMania for a moment, before asking Ezekial if that was indeed his real name. Ezekiel paused for some time, before answering “yes”. The lie detector revealed that he was telling the truth. Gable asked Ezekial if his name was Ezekiala and if his brother was Elias, all of which were revealed as the truth by the lie detector.
Ezekiel took off the test and told KO he is sick of being called a liar. He said he’s excited to have his first match on RAW as Owens grew incensed. KO demanded the truth from Ezekial or else. Zeke said or else what and was attacked by Chad Gable. Owens exited up the ramp as we went to break.
(Cate’s Analysis: Chad Gable is hilarious, and it is nice having Ezekial/Elias back. Both of those things do not forgive the fact that Kevin Owens deserves better than to be the entertaining tough guy who can talk but also always gets his comeuppance and does not win matches. We need to get KO in a better program before all the rub from his Austin match at Mania is gone. Unfortunately, I don’t see Owens sniffing a title program at all anytime soon, especially not on Raw with Cody, Rollins, AJ and Edge taking part in far more serious programs.)
(3) EZEKIAL vs. CHAD GABLE
We returned to Raw and the match was underway. Ezekiel pummeled Gable into the corner with kicks and threw Gable across the ring. Gable rolled to the outside, but was chased by Ezekial and driven face first to the steps.
Back in the ring Ezekial stayed in control with some slaps in the corner. Gable gained control and took Zeke to the mat, working on the left leg. Gable hit a northern lights suplex for a two count. Chad continued to punish the leg until Zeke got to his feet to regain control. They ran the ropes a bit with Ezekial holding momentum. Gable knocked Zeke to the mat and went for a moonsault, but Ezekial got his foot up. Zeke hit a big spinebuster and applied a straight ankle lock on Gable. Otis rushed the ring and knocked down Ezekial to end the match.
WINNER: Ezekiel by disqualification in 5:00.
(Cate’s Analysis: This match didn’t get enough time, but both men are quite athletic and the bout had a good pace. Gable was a great choice for Ezekial/Elias’s first match back.)
-Video package aired of The Usos/RKO-Bro highlights from the last couple of weeks.
(4) RK-BRO vs. THE STREET PROFITS
-Orton and Dawkins started the match with a lock up. The two went back and forth, exchanging some offensive hits. Orton uppercutted Dawkins into the corner and tagged in Riddle. RK-BRO stomped Hawkins and Riddle hit a senton with support from Orton. Montez Ford got the tag and stayed in control of Riddle with a backdrop. Ford went for a high risk attack, but was suplexed from the top rope by Riddle as Raw went to break.
Back from commercial, Ford and Riddle traded blows with Riddle downing Ford with a kick to the face. Orton got the tag, hitting Dawkins with a scoop slam. Riddle and Orton hit a stereo middle rope DDT on their opponents and played to the crowd. Riddle signaled for an RKO on Dawkins. Suddenly, The Usos’ music hit, distracting RK-Bro. The Street Prophets took advantage, setting Riddle up for their finish, hitting it and getting the three-count.
WINNERS: The Street Profits by pinfall in 7:00.
-After the match, Ford revealed The Street Prophets played The Usos’ theme to distract the Raw tag champs and win the match. They said The Usos’ aren’t the only team in WWE to worry about and that they wanted the smoke.
(Cate’s Analysis: Glad to see The Street Profits starting to ease into bad guy territory. Dawkins and Ford should be more successful developing their characters in the heel sandbox rather than remaining crowd pandering faces. A heel turn is almost always better than being stuck as a wrestler, singles or tag, that loses, all while continuing to smile each week as the crowd slowly loses hope for them.)
-We got a replay of last week’s events involving A.J. Styles-Edge/Damian Priest storyline.
-Edge and Damian Priest stood in a purple room with Edge seated in a tall leather armchair. Damian said it was time to remind them who they are. Edge said he has always been this man, referencing his past with The Brood and The Ministry of Darkness. Edge said it was time for him and Priest to unlock their potential. Edge lamented Priest having no match at WrestleMania this year. He complained about having to ask for a match himself at the big event this year, even though he has an amazing track record and is a Hall of Famer. Edge alluded to multiple opinions about himself, including being around too much, being around not enough, and being labeled a “part-timer”. Edge said he finally decided to not care what anyone thinks and take back his mountain of omnipotence. He challenged A.J. to a rematch at WrestleMania Backlash. He told Styles, like Priest did last week, that it was A.J’s “judgment day.”
(Cate’s Analysis: This is all just too bizarre. I love Edge (who doesn’t love Edge?!), but this is just not a good character. I’m sure they can save it if they want to, but I think this is doing some damage to Priest for sure. He’s lost his cool factor and now just feels like a hired gun to a laaaaame incarnation of the Edge character. Many have complained that this arc is too similar to AEW’s House of Black, but I’m almost begging WWE at this point just to copy that. I don’t like this Edge. He’s only dark and vampire-like because of the lighting. Take the smoke and mirrors away and you’re left with another complaining, unappreciated heel wrestler. Why does Vince have to make all of these naturally cool people, whether it’s someone like Rollins or Edge, so cartoonish?”)
-Theory made his entrance as we got a graphic for the U.S. title match and went to break.
-Back on Raw, A.J. was interviewed backstage and asked for a response. A.J. called his opponent “Judge Edge”. The lights flickered backstage until the purple light filled the room with Edge and Damian Priest standing on either side of A.J. They beat down Styles and slammed his hand into a storage area in the locker room.
-The announcers threw to a highlight reel of Theory.
-Finn Balor made his entrance.
(5) FINN BALOR vs. THEORY – United States Championship Match
–Balor and Theory locked up and ran the ropes. Theory hit Finn with a shoulder block, which led to Balor taking Theory to the corner and gaining control with some offense. They battled around the ring and Theory hit a backbreaker and locked in a sleeper hold. Theory maintained control and scored a two count. He held Balor with a sleeper for another minute until Balor broke free, only to be countered and hit with a neckbreak on the outside of the ring by Theory as we went to another commercial.
Back from break and Theory had the sleeper on a downed Balor. They went to their feet with Theory hitting some stomps. Balor fired up and hit a few high impact spots and a stomp to the chest on Theory in the middle of the ring. Theory would counter again with a spinning backbreaker. Theory picked Balor up and hit a nice clothesline. Balor countered with a DDT. Balor went for a suplex from outside the ropes to inside the ring, but Theory countered. Theory dove into the ring for an attack but was caught with a sitdown powerbomb by Finn. Finn scored some chops on Theory who countered with a double chop to Balor’s throat. Finn gained control again, hit some stomps and worked the crowd. Balor hit a switchblade and a big dropkick to the corner. Set up for Coup de Grâce, Balor went to the top turnbuckle but was countered by Theory into a big springboard spanish fly. A close two count for Theory, and the match carried on.
The two fought back and forth, leading to Theory being thrown to the outside. Balor hit a big flip dive onto Theory and went back to the top rope for a second attempt at Coup de Grâce back in the ring. Theory moved, hit Balor with his finish and scored the win and championship.
Winner and NEW United States Champion – Austin Theory in 11:00.
-Post match, many of the lower tier Raw heels, along with ALPHA ACADEMY came out to congratulate Theory and raise his hand and he lifted the championship above his head. “No Chance in Hell” played and Mr. McMahon took the stage. He gestured to Theory to meet him on the stage. Theory and McMahon took some selfies and McMahon raised his hand.
(Cate’s Analysis: Very cool moment for Theory. The United States Championship also feels more important now that it’s on someone who has a storyline trajectory. Nothing against Finn Balor, but he wasn’t given the chance to do anything interesting with the U.S. Title. I do worry about him falling into Jeff Hardy territory for a bit until creative needs him to spice up a world title scene like he did on Smackdown a few months ago.)
-Backstage Seth walked and checked his phone. He was then asked by Kevin Patrick if he decided on Cody Rhodes’ opponent for tonight. He refused to spoil the surprise and went off to take a call from that person.
-R-Truth made his entrance as the ring crew set up wedding decorations for the Double Commitment Ceremony as we went to a commercial.
-Raw returned as the 24/7 crew stood in attendance with Reggie and Tozawa awaiting their brides, Tamina and Dana Brooke. R-Truth made everyone aware there was an “R-Truce” to prevent any 24/7 Championship shenanigans, and that anything related to it was off limits. Truth asked Buffalo “What’s up?!” and introduced the brides.
Tamina and Dana entered the ring as the wedding proceedings began. Dana went to read her vows but was overpowered by crowd chants. Truth did crowd control as Dana continued. Reggie then read his vows to Dana. Truth made a brief reference to “Shout” by the Isley Brothers that the crowd ate up.
Tozawa and Tamina were brief and Truth went to take the segment home. Tamina then objected and traded Tozawa for Reggie. Tamina then traded herself and joined Dana. It ended with Tamina going back to Tozawa and Truth pronounced both couples committed. The couples kissed and Reggie laid Dana down to get the pin and win the 24/7 title. A few more pinfalls happened with Tozawa and Tamina all winning the 24/7 title. It ended with Dana winning the title back and jumping on Truth’s back to run backstage and end the segment.
(Charlie’s Analysis: Truth was the star and did his best to save this segment, but this was just filler. Much like Kevin Owens in the Ezekiel segments, Sasha Banks should not be out there with this material, even if she’s just in the background.)
-We got a replay of Lashley-MVP/Omos from last week.
-Lashley was shown backstage awaiting an interview as we went to a commercial.
-Back from break, we got a video package of WWE’s Make A Wish work.
-Bobby Lashely was backstage and showed a video from MVP/Omos. MVP said Lashley is about to see how big of a mistake he has made. MVP put over Omos and how they have moved onto bigger things. He stated that if he could make Lashley “almighty”, what could he do for “The Colossus” Omos? MVP revealed Omos challenges Lashley to an arm wrestling match. Lashley responded that he wasn’t surprised MVP is hiding behind Omos. He said MVP was right about Omos being big strong and scary, but so was he. Lashley ended by accepting the challenge and saying he would prove why they call him “The Almighty” next week.
-Back in the arena, Cody Rhodes made his entrance.
-Raw returned and we got some plugs for next week’s Raw matches, including the Raw Women’s Championship match.
-Cody Rhodes waited in the ring. Seth Rollins made his entrance and revealed Cody’s opponent: Kevin Owens. Kevin entered, hugged Rollins, and headed to the ring.
(6) CODY RHODES vs. KEVIN OWENS
-Cody went for a single led takedown as Owens locked in a back headlock. He switched to a wrist lock until Rhodes fought out, only to be countered and controlled by Owens with some strikes and kicks. Owens was thrown from the ring as Cody went for a die through the ropes to the outside. Owens caught him and slammed Rhodes into the barricade as Raw went to break.
Back from break, Owens held Cody in a sleeper. Cody fought out and started building momentum with a dropkick and some fast counters. Owens stopped Rhodes again and nailed a big attack on Rhodes’ back. Owens stretched Cody over his knee and taunted the crowd.
Owens remained in control and hit a snap suplex on Cody for a two count. Rhodes went for another suplex but Cody stalled it. He got KO up for a stalling suplex and dropped him on his back to the mat. Cody went for Cross Rhodes, but was planted with a DDT. Rhodes kicked out at two. Owens went for a senton off the top rope, but Cody put his knees up. Owens recouped outside near the announce table and Cody tackled him as the two tumbled over the table to announce booth floor. “BURN IT DOWN” filled the arena as Rollins returned and watched from the stage as Raw went to its final commercial.
-Back in the match, Cody was positioning for a superplex off the top rope. KO and Rhodes traded fists, ending with KO nailing a headbutt and a frog splash on Cody. KO went back up and hit a swanton on Rhodes for a two count. Owens picked Cody up and Cody went for a cradle and a two count. He hit a hurricanrana, super kick and clothesline on Owens for a two count. KO nailed a sit down powerbomb on Rhodes, but Rhodes wouldn’t stay down for a pin.
KO went up top, but Cody stopped him with some elbows. After downing Owens, Rhodes tried for a superplex but was hit with a fisherman’s suplex off the top rope. Cody managed to dump Kevin Owens to the outside. KO argued with Rollins, leading to KO walking out of the match and giving Rhodes the count out victory.
WINNER: Cody Rhodes via countout in 16:00.
-Cody went to the top rope to celebrate the win with the crowd when Rollins rushed the ring and shoved Rhodes to the outside. Raw ended with an angry Seth Rollings staring at a woudner Cody Rhodes outside the ring.
(Cate’s Analysis: Decent TV match. Cody’s style works nicely with flashier wrestlers like Owens or Rollins. However, I need to see some more fire from Cody on the mic and when the bell rings next week. I’m happy he has a noble story, but lots of people have one of those. I want my lead babyface to be cool, and right now Cody is just fresh. Seeing him be this measured and reserved is such a contrast to how he was allowed to be in AEW. I’d like to see a little more spontaneity and a little more “fun” out of Cody. )
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