Raw Review 10/17/2016

Image via WWE.com

Goldberg! Goldberg! Goldberg! Raw is live from the Pepsi Center in Denver, Co. Tonight we see the return of Goldberg. He’s back after 2 years! What will happen when he returns and what we will he have to say about Brock Lesnar’s challenge? Also how will Mick and Stephanie answer to Smackdown’s Survivor Series challenges made by Shane and Daniel? Not to mention can Kevin Owens stay away from the wrath of Seth Rollins. Speaking of champs will Sasha Banks stay on top of Charlotte as we head into Hell In A Cell in just 2 weeks. Can Sheamus and Cesaro get their act together with o their tag team title opportunities looming. Plus will we see a more vicious Bayley tonight after the sneak attack by Dana Brooke last week?

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Raw is live tonight from the Pepsi Center in Denver, CO.

Raw kicks off with us being welcomed to the show by Michael Cole, Corey Graves & Byron Saxton.

In Ring Segment
Raw starts tonight with WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho. Owens says that Foley has a personal vendetta against him because why else would he force him to compete in the Hell In A Cell against an irrelevant challenger. Jericho Says foley does have one against you an against me. He claims it isn’t a reward to be in the Hell In A Cell it is a nail in the coffin and the fact Owens is in the Match proves Foley is a stupid idiot. Owens says he will not let this match shorten his career, only Seth’s career will be shortened. He claims years from now people will still be talking about this match and it will still be the Kevin Owens show. Jericho says he should’ve been in the match and that he could beat Seth Rollins just like the legends he did before. He proclaims he didn’t beat Seth due to bad officiating. Owens says you know what that official deserves? Jericho says he does and says he just made the list. Owens then says that in two weeks he is going to retire Rollins. Out comes Rollins.
Rollins comes out and says you gonna retire me Kev? He pokes fun at Jericho and tells him to put his scarf on the list along with his hair, his mustache, his tattoos, and his tights. Jericho tells Rollins he will be on the list. Rollins doesn’t think much of it and says Jericho should put his and Owens friendship on the list. Owens says that’s why Seth doesn’t have friends. He says him and Jericho agree one needs to stay strong. Rollins calls him out and says I get it you stay strong while Chris stays weak. Jericho says he is a G.O.A.T and he can beat Rollins at any place at anytime. Rollins says Denver is a good place to do it but what will kevin do? He says Owens can go to the back or watch him get pedigreed again. Jericho tells Owens needs to leave. He says he knows all the tricks but it doesn’t change the fact he is still his best friend, but he needs to remind everyone who he is. Owens says he will be here in spirit and that Jericho can do it. He says he will be there in spirit. Rollins tells Owens to get out of here because he has a match to win. Then we head to commercial.
My Opinion:
Seth was very funny in this segment poking fun at Jericho. They did well in selling the wedge between Jericho and Owens and leaves you waiting for it to blow up. Jericho was funny as well and did good selling himself. Owens was needs to be a little more believable. I just have a tough time in buying into him saying he is going to retire Rollins. The whole thing between Owens and Rollins thing needs to get edgier. It is fun to poke jokes and say the same blah blah blah stuff, but what made championship matches special was you couldn’t wait to see the two rip each other’s head off. Rollins and Owens have been kept apart and that’s good but to an extent. We need to see them get at it at least a little bit.

Match 1: Seth Rollins vs Chris Jericho
We are back and it is Rollins and Jericho without Owens at ringside. Jericho starts off the match on the offensive driving Rollins into the corner. Rollins is able to fight back with a clothesline. Rollins lands a nice drop kick and Jericho takes a breather. Rollins lands a nice right and a nice chop. Jericho reverses on Rollins and lands a backbreaker. Jericho gets Rollins hung up on the second rope and is in control. They take it to the outside and Rollins gets bounced ribs first and then face first into the barricade. They meet back into the ring and Rollins lands a big boot. He misses a pedigree but stays on the offensive. Rollins goes for a cover but Jericho kicks out. Jericho looks for the Walls but Rollins rolls him out. Jericho is able to kick out and gets Rollins reeling with a drop kick. We are back and Jericho is in control but Rollins is able to move out of the way as Jericho lands on the ropes. Rollins can’t regain composure to get back on top and Jericho lands a nice missile dropkick. Rollins fights back and hangs on to the ropes as Jericho misses a dropkick. Rollins lands a running knee. He sends Jericho face first into the turnbuckle. He hits the Slingblade but Jericho kicks out. Jericho connects with an elbow and hits a Lionsault. He goes for the pin but Rollins kicks out. Jericho looks for a pedigree but Rollins counters with a knee to the nose. Rollins hits a Falcon Arrow but it is not enough to put him away. As Seth goes to the top rope out comes Owens. Jerichos goes to take a breather outside but Rollins flies and meets him with a crossbody. Rollins brings him into the ring and goes for a Pedigree. Jericho counters with the Walls of Jericho. Rollins tries reaching for ropes and is almost there but Owens pulls it away from him. Jericho keeps the hold locked in but Rollins fights out. Rollins goes for the Pedigree again but Jericho counters and hits an enziguri. Jericho goes for a Code Breaker but Rollins counters with a Pedigree for the win.
Winner: Seth Rollins
My Opinion:
A very solidly contested match between the two. I liked that Seth didn’t dominate and he had to fight for the win. Jericho did well selling the desperation to win the match. I thought he did well in showing he still is Y2J. Owens coming out added a nice touch. It continues the fact that Owens is holding Jericho back and leaves wonders of what can happen at Hell In A Cell. Seth needs these wins to keep showing he is in it to win it and will stop at nothing. It is great that he fights for the wins so you can see how bad he wants it and really buy into it.

Lita’s Exclusive Interview with Charlotte
Lita asks how do you prepare for the Hell In A Cell match. Charlotte says she doesn’t prepare she was born for these moments. Lita asks about Forbes Magazine. Charlotte says she would go as far as saying male or female she is the greatest of all time. Lita asks if she thinks she took advantage of Sasha. Charlotte proudly says no and that a win’s a win. Lita asks if it bothers her about the WWE Universe being on Sasha’s side and fighting in Sasha;s hometown. Charlotte says she doesn’t need the cheers. She claims she is superior and that Sasha needs the fans. She says the woman who has won 12 straight PPV’s with be 100 percent and that nothing will stop her, she will be the one to beat.

Match 2: Mark Henry & The Golden Truth (Goldust & R-Truth) vs The Shinning Stars (Epico and Primo) & Titus O’Neil
Goldust and Primo start off the match. Goldust starts with some nice shoulder tackles and has a nice deep armdrag. Primo takes Goldust off his feet and in comes Titus. Titus stomps on Goldust and whips him into the corner. In Comes Epico. Epico grounds Goldust but he fights back and lands a nice powerslam. In comes Titus and Truth off the tags. Truth lands a nice heel kick. He lands a nice split leg over Titus’s back and pins Titus but it is broken up. Goldust comes in and lands a spinebuster but is then thrown out of the ring. Truth cleans house and Henry gets the tag. Truth pushes Titus and Henry catches Titus who didn’t know Henry was legal. Henry lands the World’s Strongest Slam and goes for the pin and gets the win 1 2 3.
Winners: Mark Henry & The Golden Truth (Goldust & R-Truth)
My Opinion:
Pointless and not very funny. Titus should be a good mid card guy but is getting screwed over. The Shining Stars gimmick doesn’t work. The Golden Truth are what they are and Mark Henry we haven’t seen in a while so it is a shame that this is when we see him. We know his career is coming to an end and it should end will a run of good matches not this. For what it is worth they did better than expected and landed their spots.

Backstage Segment
Jericho is backstage and calls for Owens. Jericho says I told you not to come down to the ring. Owens says this is what Foley and Rollins want. Jericho says I told you not to come down you stu, but he catches himself. Owens says you can’t call me that I’m Kevin Owens. Steph comes in and intervenes and says she needs these two to be on the same page. Claiming she needs them to be strong and the generals of Raw. We learn Raw has accepted Smackdown’s Survivor Series challenge.

Match 3: Sheamus vs Big E
Sheamus gets Big E in a headlock but Big E powers him down. Sheamus gets up and lands a powerful suplex. Sheamus lands a shoulder to the gut but Big E takes him down. Sheamus is able to power through Big E and starts landing nice uppercuts. Big E launches Sheamus over the top rope but Sheamus is quick back on the apron. That last for a minute until he is taken down and Big E lands a nice splash on the apron. Sheamus is able to catch Big E with a nice rolling senton as we head to break. We are back with Big E landing a nice belly to belly and another one to follow. Big E goes for a splash but Sheamus gets his knees up. Sheamus goes for the Irish Curse but it isn’t enough to keep Big E down. Big E lands a big powerbomb but Sheamus powers out of the pin. Sheamus hits White noise but Big E powers out again. Sheamus lands 10 Beats of the Bodhran and knocks Big E off the apron. Sheamus gets distracted but Cesaro and as he gets back in the ring he gets blasted by Big E. Big E goes for the pin and gets the win.
Winner: Big E
My Opinion:
A little stale of a match. I feel the storyline of Sheamus and Cesaro is dragging on. We get the point that they have trouble working together. Plus the whole comedy tag teams is getting old as well. It isn’t a tough nosed fight for the title anymore. The New Day floats along with these matches and it just goes on and on and on. Plus Big E looked very normal, it seemed he got dominated a lot in this match. The whole idea that we don’t know if Sheamus and Cesaro can work together is supposed to be the hype for seeing them fight for the titles is a disappointment. Frankly I don’t care if they can or not but I want the tag team division to mean something . These single matches use to mean something. It use to be huge to get a win over someone on the other team. Now it is just a joke.

Match 4: Bo Dallas vs Neville
Bo backs Neville into the corner and stomps on him. Bo knocks down Neville and lands vicious knees strikes to Neville. Bo hits a nice high elbow and is in control. Bo goes for a big clothesline but Neville counters and drops Bo to his knees. Neville lands and enzuigiri and heads to the top rope. Bo rolls out of the ring but Neville meets him with a moonsault. Back in the ring and Neville goes for a third try off the top but Bo catches him and knocks him off. Bo takes down Neville and gets the quick win. After the match Bo attacks Curtis Axel driving him into the apron and throwing him into the barricade repeatedly finishing with a knee to the head.
Winner: Bo Dallas
My Opinion:
Okay the match was short but I loved it. For once someone who is getting a new push like Bo gets a win and it wasn’t over a jobber. Neville is just getting back and getting his feet under him so this loss doesn’t hurt him but it does wonders for Bo. You actually can start bolieving after seeing that. Sure the way he won would’ve been better but he did it fair and square and when you see him compete next now you will not be 100 percent sure that he will lose. Now he is working his way to 50/50.

Match 5: Bayley vs Dana Brooke
Bayley goes right for Dana but Dana gets out of the ring. Bayley chases her but Dana keeps running away. Bayley finally catches her. She lands a nice face buster on Dana and lands some nice shots in the corner. Dana is able to catch her with a straight right. Dana starts a moment of physical dominance. She stomps on Bayley in the corner and slams her on the mat. She grounds Bayley into a nice headlock and throws Bayley to the ground. Both women go down on a double clothesline. Bayley drives Dana into the corner. Bayley looks to the top but Dana rolls out. Bayley meets her outside with a nice baseball slide. Bayley hits the ring post and Dana is able to pick up the scraps for the win.
Winner: Dana Brooke
My Opinion:
Impressive win for Dana. Everyone is behind Bayley so this doesn’t hurt her. Dana need this and the Raws women’s division needed this. Now Dana can be looked at as a competitor that can win. It adds a new element. Plus it is nice to see that her time with Charlotte wasn’t a waste. Bayley just needs to whether the course until she gets into the championship mix. It was a sloppy match but the point was there so that is good enough in a 3 hour show.

Paul Heyman Via Satellite
Cole asks Heyman if he thinks Goldberg with answer Lesnar’s challenge in the affirmative tonight. Heyman says this situation has spun out of control. He says the challenge was rhetorical. He says Goldberg with appear live tonight to say yes. He says he wants Golberg to know that Lesnar doesn’t think about him anymore. That it is a video game and a fantasy. Heyman’s suggestion is for Goldberg to show up tonight and say no. Maybe just Maybe if he says yes he is going to piss Brock Lesnar off. He states that the WWE Universe thinks Goldberg can beat Lesnar. He asks Goldberg to take his advice and not say yes because if he does he will be humbled and embarrassed.

Match 6: Braun Strowman vs The Mile High Trio
They tell Byron that Braun is going to get winded and that they are not outsiders and that there is no man in the world that can beat them. Strownman takes one down with a boat and throws the other two out of the ring. He takes the one that was in the ring and throws him on the two outside. Braun lands a nice double drop kick and lands a big splash. Strowman chases one of them around the ring and takes him down. Strowman slams one man and slams the second one on him for the win. Braun says that if Foley won’t give him the competition that he wants he is coming to the back to get it. Out comes Sami Zayn. Strowman shoves Zayn out of the ring and leaves.
Winner: Braun Strowman
My Opinion:
How long will this go on for? A man like Strowman should be in a heated rivalry with someone worth value. How great would it have been to see Strowman in a Hell In A Cell match? He needs competition. This is getting old I can’t stand it. I don’t know how well a Braun and Sami rivalry will be but at least that was step in the right direction. Hopefully things will start picking up.
As Raw returns Sami is stopped backstage by Charlie and asked why he picked a fight with Braun. He says because nobody else will.

In Ring Segment:
Lana is in the ring and introduces her husband Rusev. Rusev says in 2 weeks he has the opportunity to crush Roman. Rusev yells in Russian as the crowd chants “What.” Lana says she knows Rusev is a family man. Rusev says Roman I know you have a family and that is good for you. He disses Romans family and then claims his family is civilized. He then shows pictures of his family. Lana says this is what it means to be a champion. She says she loves her mother in law. Rusev says don’t you dare boo my mother. He says I didn’t know they legalized stupidity in this state. He then talks about his dad. Lana says he is a strong man. He goes on to his brother and then to his grandmother and his family dog. Then to his cousins until he is interrupted by Roman.
Roman says you are right about one thing I have a big family and not the bloodline but the Roman Empire. He says Rusev looks like the family dog. Roman tells Rusev to call whoever he wants because it is going to be them one on one. He says when he is done with him the only place he is going to call is 911. Rusev doesn’t take kindly. Lana slaps Roman and Rusev lands a superkick. He continues the assault on the outside. Rusev throws him into the ring and attacks him with the steps. Rusev crushes Roman on the steps and locks in the Accolade.
My Opinion:
I don’t care to hear Roman trying to be funny and I don’t care for hearing Rusev being sentimental. They are supposed to be monsters and the segment didn’t get good until they actually go at it and they stopped talking. That was just bad in the terms of talking it landed flat. Hopefully they will just go at it and drop the talking because it isn’t good.

Match 7: Karl Anderson vs Big Cass
Cass takes the fight to Anderson quickly. Cass Throws hands and hits a fall away slam that knocks Anderson out of the ring. They meet back in the ring and Anderson tries to get on the offensive. Cass quickly hits the East River Crossing for the win
Winner: Big Cass
My Opinion:
Sad to see this is what The Club has come to. They aren’t dominate and they aren’t scary. They seem weak and unprepared. Great for Cass he looked dominate but I’m and Enzo don’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. This match was so short and just at a bad point in the show where Raw just drags on. These two teams aren’t big crowd poppers at the moment so it just didn’t work all around.

Backstage Segment
Gulak and Nese are backstage with Kendrick. Kendrick tells them to just follow his lead out there. Perkins comes and interrupts. Kendrick says this is Raw and here there are no friends just allies. Perkins says what he promised you two the world if you soften me up? Kendrick says you don’t know me. Perkins says he does and it is going to be game over. Kendrick says that’s the problem it is a game to you. Swann and Alexander come in and ask if there’s a problem. Swann says if they want to throw knuckles him and Alexander can Handle that. We head to break.

Lita’s Exclusive Interview with Sasha Banks
Lita asks how she is feeling. She says she has been ready and it is crazy to see how far they’ve come. She says she does respect her but she is here to show she is the best. Sasha says that Hell In A Cell is in here home town and she is making history. She says that sometimes she doesn’t know that this is real and that it is crazy. Sasha says she is back and better than ever. Sasha says she isn’t afraid and she knows that fear isn’t an option and she is here to make history.

Match 8: Drew Gulak & Tony Nese & Brian Kendrick vs Tj Perkins & Rich Swann & Cedric Alexander
Swann and Gulak lock up. Gulak does a nice take down on Swann. Swann is quick to his feet and fights back. Cedric comes in and is met with Nese who gets the tag. The two exchange some moves and in comes Perkins. Nese shows some power against Perkins with a suplex. Kendrick gets the tag and tries to quickly get Perkins locked up but Perkins is too quick and reverses it. Back with Gulak and Cedric. Cedric explodes with a kick. Kendrick gets the tag and isolates Cedric for a moment. Nese and Swann are now the legal men. Swann connects with a hurricanrana off the top rope. Swann goes up top but is caught by Nese. Nese hits a 450 and tags Kendrick. Kendrick locks in the Captain’s Hook. for the win.
Winners: Drew Gulak & Tony Nese & Brian Kendrick
My Opinion:
It wasn’t that exciting to me. They had nice moves and it was what it was but it feels they were again thrown out there. I get hyping Perkins and Kendrick but I think it fell flat. I wasn’t excited and it didn’t leave me waiting for the match. Now with these Cruiserweights I just say oh great. Only because there is nothing to buy into. In terms of the match they always land their spot and it is great but there are only so many reversals, dives, and hurricanranas you can see before it loses its specialty.

In Ring Segment
Steph apologizes for announcing accepting Smackdown’s challenge without Foley. Steph asks what tricks Foley has up his sleeve for next week. Foley says next week main event of Raw Owens vs Jericho vs Rollins. Steph says she loves it and the two high-five.

Goldberg Returns to Raw
Goldberg! Goldberg! Goldberg! Goldberg is emotional after an overwhelming response. A “holy shit” chant breaks out echoing through the arena, followed by a “this is awesome” chant. He thanks the crowd and says it has been a long time and you didn’t forget. Cole tells Goldberg the floor is all his. Goldberg says never say never. He states he never thought he would be in this ring again and thanks them for the humbled return. He explains about his opportunity getting to work with 2K and promoting the game. He says he misses being a superhero for the kids again. He claims that along the way he created some drama in the WWE and thought long and hard about it. He says maybe it is better left alone and left in the video game but then Brock Challenged him to a fight but he didn’t have the balls to do it himself. He says that got him thinking and he thought to himself that maybe he has one more ass kicking left in him and one more spear in him and one more jackhammer in him. He proclaims to Brock that he is next and that he is most importantly last. As Raw goes off the air we learn Brock Lesnar will be live next week!
My Opinion:
It was epic seeing Goldberg back. He had an amazing ovation from the crowd and I think people remember who Goldberg is. People remembered the impact Goldberg had on the business and Goldberg appreciated the reception he was getting. Bill’s words were powerful and it was simple and to the point. Brock is next! I hope that this a good return and they don’t squash his career. Nonetheless it was super cool seeing him in a WWE ring again and hopefully we get our superhero back in full force to conquer the beast.

Final Thoughts:
Goldberg obviously was the highlight of the night. The main reason anyone would come back to watch this episode or remember it was because of Goldberg. Nothing topped it and how could it? Everything else was simple and plain. Nothing really productive happened and it was more or less a safe week. They kept everything just moving forward but for me there wasn’t enough hype for some of these matches. The women are going to be in a Hell In A Cell and to hype that they gave us pre recorded interviews. They were to the point but it doesn’t do it for me. Rusev and Reigns didn’t do much of anything but bore us with their talking. The Cruiserweights did the same old same old and the Universal Title rivalry was well done but only being talked about in the first hour and a half. It is kinda sad when Bo Dallas and Dana Brooke had the biggest nights tonight. But better safe than sorry sometimes and how can you complain too much when you get to see Golberg! Goldberg! Goldberg!
Overall Rating: 7/10