WWE RAW HITS & MISSES 8/29: Rollins and Riddle hit with final Clash hype, women’s tag main event misses, more

Ziggler & Styles vs. Priest & Balor – HIT: On a show with a lot of talking (at least it seemed like the most since Triple H took over), it was nice that the show started off with a match, although there was a video recap of Edge vs. Damian Priest from last week’s main event. This was a good, but not great tag team match with the somewhat odd pairing of Dolph Ziggler & AJ Styles against The Judgement Day’s Priest & Finn Balor. There were some sloppy spots in the match, but it was good enough with Judgment Day getting a strong win heading into their match against Edge & Rey Mysterio at Clash at the Castle.

Build to Edge & Mysterio vs. Judgment Day – MISS: This started out looking like it was going to be a Hit, but ended up a Miss in the end. I liked how Judgment Day was leaving the ring and saw Edge show up so they decided to get back in the ring. I wasn’t a big fan of Balor complaining about not getting an A&E documentary. I wasn’t buying his motivations. I liked the mic work from Edge once he came out. The surprise attack from the Mysterios worked well at first. But, I didn’t like what they did with Dominick almost being under a spell of Rhea Ripley. The tease of the man on woman violence wasn’t great. It was odd to have Balor and Priest pull Ripley out of the ring. Later, you had even more of a tease of Dominik turning on his dad which is the WWE’s version of the never ending story. I’m not a fan of the father vs. son story. The tag match could be good, but it will likely be too much of an angle and be over booked to be good.

The Miz – HIT: The Miz did a good job of acting spooked throughout Raw after his kidnapping by Dexter Lumis last week. They actually explained why Lumis wasn’t in jail any more. Ciampa played his part well trying to support and encourage Miz. The way Miz was jumpy as he constantly was looking over his shoulder including during his match against Bobby Lashley worked well. I wish WWE actually had something for Lashley right now. He feels like an afterthought which isn’t good. I’m still not that interested in what they are doing with Lumis, but this week’s portion of the story was well told.

Street Profits vs. Alpha Academy – HIT: This was a really good match, although one we’ve seen many times in the past. At least it has been a little while. The segment before it with Kurt Angle, Alpha Academy and The Street Profits which set the tag match up was a lot of fun. I enjoyed watching Angle and Chad Gable going back and forth. I doubt anyone was buying the possibility that Angle would have to join Alpha Academy, but it was still a solid hook for the match and gave Angle a reason to cheer for The Street Profits. We got a good match, and the milk celebration afterwards was fun too.

Riddle – Rollins – HIT: Having supposed fan video footage of a parking lot altercation between Seth Rollins and Riddle was a good idea. It was a creative way to have some behind-the-scenes footage without having to accept the fact that they happened to have a camera there. The split screen interview was strong. I appreciate how they talked over each other and interrupted each other which is more natural than if they took turns talking while the other sat there quietly listening. The real highlight of course was the censored part after the commercial break when we found out that they had kept talking and getting more and more heated towards each other during the break. That led to some more intense moments and some bleeped swearing which added to the realism of the situation. I continue to look forward to this match at the PLE.

Owens vs. Uso – HIT: Like the Street Profits vs. Alpha Academy Hit, this Hit is two in one. The talking segment before it with the Usos and Sami Zayn being interrupted by Kevin Owens was good. The relationships and performances by everyone involved in the Bloodline continue to be the highlight of any show they are on. I love how Jimmy Uso seems to genuinely like Zayn, while Jey can’t even hide his disdain for him. They played into that well here with both Owens and Zayn talking about it. This set up the very good match between Owens and Jey. This was the best match of the show. I could go on and on about the strong wrestling action, but I will focus on the story as Zayn hesitated to hit Owens in the head with the chair, which cost Jey the match. I am definitely looking forward to seeing the reaction from Roman Reigns to that. I also can’t wait to see where all of these guys go from here. Will we get a reunion of Owens & Zayn? Will Owens get a World Title match against Reigns?

Gargano – Theory – HIT: WWE continues to play with their format with different ways of presenting talking segments. This was a nice interview with Johnny Gargano in an empty arena about his return last week. Theory did a nice job of interrupting. They played into their past well, although WWE still needs to do a strong video package on The Way to really sell their past relationship. For now, they are at least both doing a good job of explaining it in these segments.

Rodriguez & Aliyah vs. Kai-en-Sky – MISS: The main even was a Miss on multiple levels. I appreciate that they had the finals of the Women’s Tag Team Tournament as the main event, but this was one of the least star studded main events in recent Raw history. That isn’t a dig at these four women, but none of them have yet reached star status on the main roster which doesn’t mean they aren’t talented. I’m a big fan of Dakota Kai and Iyo Sky. Raquel Rodriguez has a lot of potential and a bright upside. But, she isn’t a star yet. Beyond the star power, they didn’t gel in the ring together. It wasn’t a good match, despite a good amount of talent. They are doing a disservice to Aliyah by having her taking a nap in every match. Yes she got the win here, but they are clearly setting up the idea that Rodriguez is carrying her. The fact that they won was a mistake. Bayley’s new faction needs credibility, so I don’t get why they lost at all. That wasn’t a good way to build anticipation for their six woman tag against Bianca Bel Air, Asuka & Alexa Bliss at the PLE. This was a disappointing ending to what was a pretty good show overall.

Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com’s WWE Hits & Misses Specialist, providing his point of view for Raw and Smackdown each week. Email him at jmezz_torch@yahoo.com.

CATCH-UP: 8/29 WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW RESULTS: Keller’s report on Kurt Angle’s return, Seth-Riddle face-to-face, Rodriguez & Aliyah vs. Kai & Sky in Women’s Tag Title Tournament Final, Usos & Sami visit