Monday Night Raw Review - October 16, 2023

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champion Jey Uso Saved Sami Zayn From The Judgment Day

​I loved that the show started with Zayn talking about being affected by Kevin Owens being traded to SmackDown and blaming Uso for that, despite being close with him. It makes sense and I'm glad they're telling that story. Judgment Day interrupting whoever's in the opening segment has become so damn predictable, but this served its purpose in hyping the main event and also planting the seeds for something with Zayn and Uso down the road.

Shinsuke Nakamura def. Ricochet in a Falls Count Anywhere Match

This was a really fun Falls Count Anywhere match as they took their fight all over the arena, including in the crowd and backstage. Both guys were in their element and pulled off some cool spots. Nakamura got back on the right track following his latest loss to Seth Rollins at Fastlane and Ricochet doesn't suffer much damage after the showing he had. I'm curious where both guys go from here, though.

WWE Women's Tag Team Champion Piper Niven def. Natalya

I feel like we've barely seen Niven in the ring on Raw as of late. I know she was out for a bit with an illness or an injury, but she and Chelsea Green have not defended their WWE Women's Tag Team Championship once to my knowledge. Is there even a point to those titles existing? This was decent while it lasted with Niven going over decisively as she should have. Tegan Nox made the save for Natalya afterward, so expect an eventual tag team match.

World Heavyweight Champion Seth "Freakin" Rollins and Drew McIntyre Exchanged Words

The goofy side of Rollins does nothing for me at this point, but his promos are always better whenever he gets serious and that's what we got from him here. This was an excellent exchange with the two of them acknowledging their history and bringing up some great points. The McIntyre heel turn is inevitable, but the question is whether it'll happen before, at or after Crown Jewel. This left me looking forward to their upcoming championship clash more than I already was.

Ludwig Kaiser def. Johnny Gargano

Imperium attacked Tommaso Ciampa during DIY's backstage sit-down interview last week, so he wasn't present at ringside for this match. Therefore, Gargano had an out for losing because he was outnumbered. Ideally, he shouldn't be losing to Ludwig Kaiser, but it was logical in this case and they had a well-wrestled match. As long as DIY goes over in the end, that's what matters. Gargano will go one-on-one with Giovanni Vinci next week on Raw.

Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley vs. Shayna Baszler Ended in a No Contest

I feel like a lot of the women's matches on Raw recently have had non-finishes, and as lazy as it is, I understand the need to protect all of these women. Ripley vs. Baszler was solid while it lasted because they've always had terrific chemistry together, even though they obviously didn't reach the same heights of their NXT battles years ago. We got the usual brawl with Ripley, Baszler, Nia Jax, Raquel Rodriguez and now Zoey Stark, leading to the announcement from Adam Pearce later on that Ripley will defend the title in a Fatal 5-Way at Crown Jewel.

Intercontinental Champion Gunther def. Bronson Reed

I've wanted to this match for a long time and it was exactly what I hoped it would be: an all-out hoss fight. They made the most of the time they had and beat the hell out of each other. It was as blast and the crowd didn't seem to mind the heel vs. heel dynamic. Reed looked credible in defeat, but I hope he can find some direction and settle into a storyline coming out of this loss. My only regret is that this wasn't saved for Crown Jewel.

The Judgment Day (Finn Balor and Damian Priest) def. Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso to Win the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship

This was along the same lines as their Fastlane match in that it was all action and completely chaotic, especially down the stretch. It was a top-notch main event, but I was not high on Judgment Day getting the belts back. It's the third time the tag titles have changed hands in roughly six months, but for what reason? Rhodes and Uso work wonderfully together, but they didn't need to become champs in the first place. Jimmy Uso coming to Raw to cost Jey the win also defeats the purpose of the Brand Split (what else is new, I know) when WWE really should be keeping them separate until WrestleMania rolls around if the plan is still for them to finally face off there.

Overall Show

Similar to SmackDown on Friday night, this was a strong "season premiere" for Raw. As noted, I thought the tag titles changing hands yet again was unnecessary, but it was certainly an eventful ending to the show. The rest of the episode held my interest and it's pretty apparent Triple H is in complete creative control at this point. The subtle storytelling continues to be a highlight and the matches this week also delivered, making for an entertaining three hours on the whole.

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