Monday Night Raw Review - April 29, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Alexa Bliss Announced the Participants in the Men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Is there a reason why it was Bliss' job to announce the participants in the men's Money in the Bank Ladder match? I can understand why she was assigned that task for the women, but I was confused why one of the McMahons didn't do it for the men instead. Either way, this was a solid segment that set up the subsequent tag team match with everyone playing their roles well. Ricochet will be the resident high-flier in the bout while Baron Corbin and Braun Strowman have already won the briefcase before (and failed to cash in the contract successfully), so McIntyre is my pick to win out of this crop of competitors.

Ricochet and Braun Strowman def. Baron Corbin and Drew McIntyre

McIntyre and Corbin made it a point to bring up Ricochet's small size during the opening segment. That combined with McIntyre and Corbin teasing tension after what happened last week made it obvious that the babyfaces were winning this. It was a well-wrestled match and it's nice to see Ricochet rebound coming off his recent loss to Robert Roode, even if a victory for him at Money in the Bank likely isn't in the cards.

The Usos def. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson

The Superstar Shake-up was two weeks ago and WWE is still having Superstars switch shows. What a mess. It's not like this move for Gallows and Anderson matters anyway considering they're probably on their way out of the company when their contracts reportedly expire later this year. This match received a ton of time, but the outcome was never in doubt. Afterward, The Usos played footage of them catching The Revival shaving each other's backs. Man, at this point, The Revival would be downright dumb to re-sign with WWE if this is what they're going to be subjected to creatively.

The Miz Hosted Miz TV with Bobby Lashley; Lashley def. Miz

I was really worried that this was going to be a full-fledged feud, because based off what we saw during Miz TV and the match that followed, they don't have much chemistry together. On the bright side, Miz will continue to feud with Shane McMahon at least through Money in the Bank it seems. And I say "thankfully" because Miz lost to Shane at WrestleMania and should get his win back eventually.

NXT Tag Team Champions The Viking Raiders def. The Lucha House Party in a "Lucha House Rules" Match (Non-title)

Oh god, it looks like "Lucha House Party" rules are back, at least for one night only. Please, please do not let this becoming a recurring that. It was bad enough that we had it in the first place late last year. Even with the numbers advantage, Lucha House Party were still beaten by Viking Raiders with ease. This was a standard squash match for Viking Raiders, but I'm not getting the feeling that they're clicking on the main roster yet.

Alexa Bliss Announced the Participants in the Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match on Moment of Bliss; Naomi def. Bliss

All of the talking from Natalya, Dana Brooke and Naomi on Moment of Bliss was atrocious, and I mean absolutely atrocious. Whoever wrote that trash should be fired. It definitely didn't get me excited for the women's Money in the Bank Ladder match and the only women I can see winning from Raw is Naomi. Bliss vs. Naomi, on the other hand, was fine albeit forgettable. Bliss not being dressed to compete made it more of an angle than a true matchup.

Raw and SmackDown Women's Champion Becky Lynch and Lacey Evans Brawled

Lynch started to feel like she was becoming stagnant because of how her character hadn't evolved much at all since WrestleMania, but this was great mic work from her. She did an effective job of establishing Evans and Charlotte Flair as threats to her title, not to mention that her brawl with Evans was well done. Now the question is if Evans will deliver in the biggest match of her career at Money in the Bank.

Raw Tag Team Champions Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins def. The Revival (Non-title)

Revival's horrible night continued with yet another loss to Ryder and Hawkins. Their matches at WrestleMania 35 and on the next night's Raw were fun, but this didn't have the same spark because it was clearly designed to be filler. I'm glad Ryder and Hawkins picked up the victory (they needed it), but it was once again in fluky fashion. Then again, they're supposed to be underdogs, so I guess it makes sense for them to be winning by the skin of their teeth.

Sami Zayn Addressed the WWE Universe

I'm still loving the hell out of Zayn's new gimmick where he takes pride in crapping on fans and the company. His delivery and material were fantastic, but it's about time he enters a rivalry with someone to ensure he doesn't run the risk of repeating himself. He and Cedric Alexander briefly crossed paths last week on Raw, so I'd be all for Alexander stepping up to shut Zayn up sometime soon.

Rey Mysterio def. United States Champion Samoa Joe (Non-title)

Mysterio vs. Joe was cut short at WrestleMania due to time constraints, so I appreciated that they were finally given a chance to have the match they were capable of on this show. Due to happening so late in the night, the crowd wasn't as into the action as they would have been otherwise, but I enjoyed this for what it was. I can't say I was surprised by Mysterio winning just because of the story they told coming into this contest. Expect a rematch at Money in the Bank for the United States title.

AJ Styles Attacked Universal Champion Seth Rollins After Signing the Contract for Their Match at Money in the Bank

This was an entertaining exchange between Styles and Rollins, but Styles definitely came across as more heelish than Rollins with what he had to say. It also looked like he turned heel when he attacked Rollins from behind after the actual contract signing was over, but I think that was merely in response to Rollins not shaking his handshake. However, if either one of these guys is going to turn heel eventually, it should be Styles. I'm really interested to see what WWE books for the finish of their match at the pay-per-view.

Overall Show

I was high on Raw coming out of the Superstar Shake-up and the roster they were left with. In fact, I was in the minority who liked last week's show. Unfortunately, I can not say the same for this installment, which largely dragged and lacked excitement. The contract signing, the opening tag team match, and the Lynch-Evans brawl were among the highlights (as well as the latest Firefly Fun House), but everything else underwhelmed for the most part. By the way, I have no clue how long this Shake-up will last. I'm starting to think moves will be made at least once a week until WrestleMania 36.