Instant Reaction - WWE Raw 7/22
By Ben Tucker, PWTorch TV specialist

Overall Live Score - 6.0

From a live perspective, Monday's Raw was not a fantastic show. If anything, it felt uneven. Certain stories, such as the McMahon-Bella saga, reached new highs. Other red-hot feuds, such as the Ambrose-Rollins rivalry, weren't touched on. Talents like Jack Swagger and the Usos were left off the program, so Zack Ryder could pin Fandango in a minute. Raw had multiple fine moments, but it felt disjointed.

What to Watch Later:

Q3: While the Nikki Bella handicap match was absolute rubbish, Brie Bella's interactions with Stephanie McMahon may have produced the best content of the show. The crowd was hotter for their scuffles than anything else in the night, and Stephanie played her role masterfully.

Q4-5: Bray Wyatt's promo on Chris Jericho was very well done, severely limiting the damage that was done to Bray by losing cleanly to Jericho at Battleground. While not the strongest promo on the broadcast, Wyatt was still captivating, yet heelish as well. It's nice to see the Wyatts fully embracing their evil side, and it'll be interesting to see how Jericho responds in upcoming weeks.

Q5-6: Dolph Ziggler and The Miz had a very strong contest which was arguably the match of the night. Both men had convincing nearfalls and Miz already has the subtleties of his character down perfectly. Of course, the champion lost to a potential challenger, a big no-no when championship prestige needs to be protected as much as possible. That being said, if any champion should lose, it would be someone like Miz.

Q7: While only a small part of the show, I was a big fan of Paige's post-match beat down of A.J. The champion made Paige look like a force to be reckoned with, especially when she was flung over the announce table. All of the pieces are here for A.J. and Paige to produce a memorable feud. Now's the time to see if they're given the ability to make that happen.

Over-run: Paul Heyman returned to form tonight on the mic, masterfully putting over the now-confirmed Summerslam main event of Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena. While Lesnar himself did little, Heyman provided a real gem of a show-closer that made the most out of what there was to work with, considering that the champ himself was off of Raw. It's a shame that Heyman has a hard time elevating mid-card talents, but at least he proved tonight that he can still create magic with Brock Lesnar.

Other Tidbits:

- The biggest disappointment of the night was Dean Ambrose vs. Cesaro. The match moved incredibly slowly and ended out of nowhere for zero reason. It also happened to be placed at the worst time for the show, as the crowd was burned out by that point and ready for Lesnar's return.

- I like Roman Reigns. I really do. But he's already beginning to get treated like John Cena. Constant wins despite always having the odds stacked against him, consistently getting the last laugh, etc. The only times Reigns loses are when he's in a match against Cena himself. Feuding with stale characters like Kane and Randy Orton won't help him much, either. Watch out, WWE.

Questions? Comments? Reactions? Find me on Twitter @BTuckerTorch, where I talk about wrestling and... stuff!

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