Monday Night Raw Review - December 19, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Street Profits def. The Judgment Day (Finn Balor and Damian Priest)

I like that Street Profits recently returned and already have direction in this feud with Judgment Day. I don't think it will last long, but it keeps Judgment Day busy until Edge and Beth Phoenix return. I actually assumed Judgment Day would win to keep their momentum going, but I was pleasantly surprised Street Profits won instead. This was an entertaining opener that transitioned perfectly into Rhea Ripley vs. Akira Tozawa, and that hook heading into the commercial break teasing the match was well done.

Rhea Ripley def. Akira Tozawa

I've saying for a while that I'd love to see Ripley face some of the male Superstars since it's absolutely believable she could take the fight to most of them and I'm happy they actually went through it. Tozawa was the perfect person for Ripley to be in the ring with because Tozawa was able to score plenty of offense without actually punching or seriously hurting her, which is what WWE is probably against doing. There were some messy moments in the middle, but this was wonderfully executed otherwise and Ripley winning is another nice boost to her credibility.

The O.C. (Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows) def. Alpha Academy

As much as I love Alpha Academy, The O.C. feuding with them in recent weeks has felt like total filler and hasn't been overly interesting. This was a well-worked television match, but with such an obvious outcome, it was hard to care. Things heated up afterward when The Usos, Solo Sikoa and Sami Zayn showed up to wreak havoc (as they had been doing backstage earlier in the evening), leading to AJ Styles vs. Zayn being made official for later on. Gallows and Anderson don't move the needle for me at this point personally, but I'd be fine with them challenging The Usos for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship one of these days.

Alexa Bliss Attacked Raw Women's Champion Bianca Belair During a Sit-Down Interview with Byron Saxton

I dug the approach they took to this and it was probably the best Bliss has come across since returning to TV back in May. She sounded like a normal human being while discussing her last two years in WWE and her past alliance with Bray Wyatt. I don't want to see the two reunite, but as I've said before, I'm in full favor of Bliss turning heel. It looks like we might be headed in that direction since she laid out Belair from behind to end this segment. This was great stuff that left me looking forward to their Raw Women's Championship clash in two weeks.

The Miz def. Dexter Lumis in a Winner Takes All Ladder Match

Lumis' spot on the Raw roster was not in jeopardy in this match, but the money he won from Miz three weeks ago was up for grabs. This rivalry ran its course a while ago, and despite the quiet crowd in the first half, they put forth a strong effort and had an enjoyable Ladder match. The crowd eventually got into the action but didn't react very loudly for Bronson Reed returning and aiding Miz to victory. That's not surprising, though, since he was in NXT the last time we saw him and that was a year and a half ago. I'm happy he's back and hope he eventually breaks off on his own and isn't just Miz's latest bodyguard/partner/right-hand man.

Sami Zayn def. AJ Styles

This was along the lines of their last encounter a few months ago on Raw in that it was very well wrestled and they made the most of the time they had. Sikoa once again attacked Styles at ringside, allowing Zayn to pick up the victory. Styles was protected in defeat, but it feels like he loses far more than he should. I hope this kicks off a feud between Styles/The O.C. and The Bloodline and wasn't just a one-off to fill television time.

Seth "Freakin" Rollins Was Interrupted by United States Champion Austin Theory Before Being Saved by Kevin Owens From Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions The Usos

It was announced beforehand that Rollins will get his shot at Theory's United States Championship on the first Raw of 2023 in two weeks. Rollins and Theory had another excellent exchange on the mic and Theory leaving Rollins hanging high and dry when The Usos showed up made sense. Owens made the save for Rollins instead, setting up the night's tag team main event. I completely forgot that Owens and Rollins were buddies for a brief period earlier this year, so that was logical as well. All of this was extremely effective.

Bayley def. Becky Lynch

It was noted that this was the first one-on-one match these two have had in nearly four years (I believe the spring of 2019 on SmackDown was the last time if I'm not mistaken). Doing this right before the main event was a smart call since, because of the three hours, crowds are almost always dead for anything put in this spot, but this being a bigger bout got the crowd to care a bit more than usual. This was solid stuff, but I know they're capable of better. Bayley cheating to win was perfectly fine by me to ensure the feud continues and set up an eventual rematch.

Kevin Owens and Seth "Freakin" Rollins def. Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions The Usos (Non-Title)

Owens and Rollins have such stellar chemistry together, regardless of whether they're opponents or partners. These teams had a banger of a match on SmackDown back in January and this was also a treat for the time given. I'm not high on The Usos losing non-title matches (it happens more than it should), but the chaos on the outside with Gallows and Anderson attacking Sikoa and Theory attacking Rollins made it more acceptable. They closed out an above-average show on a high note.

Overall Show

WWE typically phones it in for their holiday shows, but this ended up being one of the strongest episodes in months. There's been plenty of filler throughout the three hours as of late, but they did a terrific job of shaking up the stagnant formula of Raw with the Bloodline stuff and formatting the show a bit better than usual. The third hour wasn't a drag, we had a hot main event, two title matches were built up for the first Raw of 2023, and it had a consistent pace without a dull moment. The Bronson Reed return was also cool and completely unexpected. Raw will be a "best of" show next Monday night, so I won't be reviewing that edition. Happy holidays!

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