One of the best Raw's of the year!

[Tom]

I only got a chance to watch Raw today but it was, in my opinion, one of the best Raw's of the year. For the first time in a long time, a lot of stuff happened on Raw that made you look forward to the following weeks. And even some of the filler stuff was watchable.

The Owens/Cena segment was awesome. Cena has been great in his role with the US title so far, it is made for segments like this. I was incredibly shocked that Owens left the encounter on top as well. What a great way it was to put over Owens as well as sell the NXT live special this Wednesday; much better than throwing together a tag match or having Charlotte make a nothing appearence which seems to have been the norm. It done an awesome job of putting NXT talent on par with WWE talent.

Also, albeit a little later than it should have been, Lana and Rusev have finally split up. Rusev didn't look great in them doing so and hopefully they can gather some much needed momentum for him in upcoming weeks but it's still a start and puts Rusev (and Lana) in new territory for the first time.

I never get sick of seeing Rollins and Ambrose paired together. I always envisioned them as guys who would feud with each other on multiple occasions throughout their career and I am extremely looking forward to their eventual singles encounter for the belt at the Chamber. The stuff on this show wasn't really stand out stuff but it is great to see two guys like Rollins and Ambrose battling in a feud for the title.

The action itself probably wasn't the best we have had all year but Raw finally felt like a show that has made me look forward to watching it again next week. And finally felt like a show that was fresh with a lot of fresh and interesting characters in prominent spots on the card. And the Chamber is looking like an awesome pay per view!

[SlightlyJames]

So by the first time in a long time, you mean the first time in 2 weeks right?

It was a good Raw, definitely.

[Tom]

So by the first time in a long time, you mean the first time in 2 weeks right?

It was a good Raw, definitely.

Not really. For weeks I have watched little Raw outside of John Cena's open challenges. Yeah, his matches with Zayn and Neville were good, especially the latter match. But they never ended as if they were building towards anything new for Cena or either character. And neither really left the encounter on top; they were just put over and made to look like the belong with the best; which is a good thing.

Cena's segment with Owens did a great job of not only building Owens but also make me look forward to another encounter/segment/meeting between them. Owens was put across great on TV, and WWE went against the norm of having a rising star/NXT superstar coming close to defeating Cena. Instead, they done the opposite and had Owens attack Cena, look like a boss by stamping on the US title and leaving Cena laying on the mat. And then finally challenging Cena on his terms. It was easily the most impressed I have been with a debut of any NXT talent since The Shield.

As well as that, Lana and Rusev finally split, the tag division and IC title is being booked in interesting matches/spots on an upcoming pay per view and Rollins/Ambrose are fighting one on one for the title. There is some good stuff to watch and look forward to in comparison to the last few weeks.

It's just a pity WWE don't do enough to get me excited on a more consistent basis; pay per views should be this interesting every month, not just on occasion!

[SlightlyJames]

If you haven't been watching much Raw you might have missed the one from 2 weeks ago, it was great. Rollins and Ambrose actually had a fantastic 1 on 1 match that might interest you. There was a great promo and match featuring Reigns/Orton and the New Day, Kidd/Cesaro had a really fun match with The Ascension and of course Sami Zayn's debut and match with Cena was really exciting.

Pretty much exactly how you described this weeks Raw is how a lot of people felt about that show.

[Tom]

If you haven't been watching much Raw you might have missed the one from 2 weeks ago, it was great. Rollins and Ambrose actually had a fantastic 1 on 1 match that might interest you. There was a great promo and match featuring Reigns/Orton and the New Day, Kidd/Cesaro had a really fun match with The Ascension and of course Sami Zayn's debut and match with Cena was really exciting.

Pretty much exactly how you described this weeks Raw is how a lot of people felt about that show.

I missed it for the most part because the Payback pay per view was being booked like a pretty bland pay per view. As I said, nothing they were doing was exciting me. Nothing felt different. I actually seen the Rollins/Ambrose match, and yeah it was a good match.

But this Raw actually opened up new opportunities and made me more excited for the NXT special tonight and the pay per view, something the Raw you mentioned didn't really do. For that reason, I would take this Raw over two weeks ago any day. I didn't have to watch an interaction between Cena and Rusev, or hear one of them talking about one another, a fresh feud was started for Cena and Rusev and Lana are in new territory. Owens's debut came across much better to me than Zayn's appearance, which was the home town boy coming over from NXT to challenge Cena. And although it was a good match, it didn't tell anything but that "Zayn is one for the future". Owens actually came in and made a statement. He looked like a boss in the ring with Cena.

As I said, the in ring action wasn't the strongest, and probably wasn't as strong as the week you mentioned. But what was booked, and what happened on the show made me look forward to seeing what happens next with a lot more characters, storylines and at the pay per view than the Raw you mentioned did for Payback!

[Hanley!]

If you haven't been watching much Raw you might have missed the one from 2 weeks ago, it was great. Rollins and Ambrose actually had a fantastic 1 on 1 match that might interest you. There was a great promo and match featuring Reigns/Orton and the New Day, Kidd/Cesaro had a really fun match with The Ascension and of course Sami Zayn's debut and match with Cena was really exciting.

Pretty much exactly how you described this weeks Raw is how a lot of people felt about that show.

Yeah, but while that show was better than usual, I don't think it got anyone looking forward to anything. I mean the Payback card still looked terrible afterwards. It was a good show in itself, but it didn't drum up all that much excitement going forwards, which is one of the things that Raw has really been missing lately.

I enjoyed the parts of this show that I watched. The fact that I watched any of it is a good sign, as the show has been so bland lately that I just read the results first and if it looks like something actually happens then I'll tune in and check those segments out. So often lately the stories appear to be treading water. It feels like if you miss Raw, you don't actually miss any story progression. Hell, I feel that way about a lot of the pay per views these days.

Owens vs Cena really made Raw this week. That was a genuine surprise and while Neville and Zayn looked great against Cena, this match actually helped to establish Owens as a character and not just as a talent. And it set up a match for down the road, and it's one that now has meaning, and where it feels like there's something on the line. I didn't feel that way for much of what happened on Payback.

Good to see you back, Tom. Any Raw that gets you posting a little is doing pretty well, if you ask me.