What You Missed From RAW Last Night

We can officially start the SummerSlam countdown, WWE fans. After a fantastic Great Balls of Fire show, WWE hit the ground running last night for RAW. With the first surge of momentum since the build to WrestleMania, what did WWE have for us?

Well, they wasted no time in setting up the framework for the SummerSlam main event as they scheduled a number one contender match between the fugitive Roman Reigns and the red-hot Samoa Joe.

Up Next: Possible SummerSlam Plans for the Universal Championship

Also set for next week is the reveal of Kurt Angle’s big, compromising secret. WWE has delicately facilitated this story and all signs point to it having SummerSlam implications.

Big Cass got a big moment, the Hardys teased their breaking, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins are looking friendlier than usual and Bray Wyatt officially owns a winning streak.

But all of this is stuff you know. I’m here to help point out the smaller details in WWE. And trust me, in 3 hours of RAW, there’s plenty of room for the crumbs to fall through the cracks of your attention span.

So let’s break it all down: here’s What You Missed From RAW Last Night:

Who says Big cass can’t cut a promo?

WWE may be indeed carving out a spot at the top for Big Cass. The big man opened RAW last night, which is an accomplishment in itself, but considering it was the RAW after a highly successful Great Balls of Fire where WWE could have lead off with several different angles, Cass got the spot. 

More: Big Cass Proves It’s Best to Leave Too Early

And he delivered. We could make an argument against WWE giving him 15 minutes, but once he got into the flow of his creed, he was believable, if not passionate. 

His heel turn was an obligatory catalyst for him to break away from Enzo Amore, but Cass’ best work may be as a larger than life babyface. We’re ways away from that moment, but hopefully WWE has that moment tucked up their sleeve, otherwise, we could be looking at Test 2.0

Bye Bye Ambrose?

It’s a little close to call, but man, Dean Ambrose could be heading for the Dark Ages. 

After an Intercontinental feud that spanned 2 WWE shows and nearly 12 months, it looks like Ambrose and the Miz will finally be going their separate ways. The Lunatic Fringe may stick around to chaperone Rollins vs. Miz but it may just be in a facilitatory role. 

Up Next: Seth Rollins On What It Would Take For A Shield Reunion

Unless WWE has plans for Ambrose and Rollins together, where does Dean go from here? Maybe I’m skeptical, but I think Dean isn’t quite ready to stand on his own two feet.  Rollins can attest to this as he’s having trouble gaining footing in his post-Authority babyface run. 

To say the Miz carried Ambrose in their program would be an easy argument to make. So the question begs, where is Ambrose going? He has a nice fan base, which is a crucial start but the time has come for him to let go of the coattails and see if he can carry a story on his own. 

Champions Eat Pins

Both Cruiserweight Champion Neville and Women’s Champion Alexa Blis were cleanly pinned last night. 

Maybe the thought of protecting your champions is a little old school, but this happens far too often. How can a hierarchy be established if the low girl on the totem pole, Bayley, is pinning the division’s figurehead? I get that they also can’t have Nia Jax eat a worthless Monday Night pin, but why not just have the heels win?

Up Next: Women’s Royal Rumble Match Possible for 2018

In that same vein, why not have Akira Tozawa pin Noam Dar instead of Cruiserweight hegemon, Neville? It seems like an easy fix where the belts stay protected, but maybe WWE prefers this kind of parody. 

Bray Wyatt is an enigma

Bray Wyatt is a wrestler that knows no moderation. His wins and losses both seem to come in buckets. He’s now won 2 consecutive televised matches, one of which was at Great Balls of Fire. Heat check!

When Wyatt won the WWE Championship at Elimination Chamber in early 2017, we all assumed the Era of Bray had begun. Then he lost his new title to Randy Orton in the worst match at WreslteMania 33. Ever since, Bray has been ice cold. Until last night, of course.  

Will WWE ever commit to him long term or will he always be the roster’s representative for novelty? As much as fans complain about his win/loss record, we all are still eager to participate in his entrance with our cell phones. Maybe Bray isn’t a guy that needs to win.  But WWE tends to mimic professional sports, so ignoring the basics of competition is just strange. 

We’ll see if WWE is serious about Wyatt as the week’s pass. There’s a lot of moving pieces currently, hopefully, a compelling one lands at Wyatt’s feet. 

Samoa Joe Is A Star

Somehow in a segment that featured WWE treasure like Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, and Paul Heyman, it was Indy journeyman, Samoa Joe who stole the show. 

While Lesnar stumbled through his limited vocabulary, Joe danced verbal circles around him, looking to be sincerely invested in every word he spoke. His intensity carried over to a spat with Reigns as well, and when the segment closed, Joe was practically shining. 

MoreL Former RAW GM Smitten Over Samoa Joe and Brock Lesnar

He’s been so good, that WWE may actually be giving him a Universal Championship re-match at SummerSlam. The groundwork has been laid for Braun Strowman to exact some violent revenge on Reigns next week, likely costing The Big Dog his title shot. If that’s how it goes down, Joe’s ticket to SummerSlam will be punched.

The next question, can he beat Lesnar? If this trend continues, WWE will have to at least entertain the idea.