WWE Raw recap, review: 'Quiz Bowl' takes Raw back to its golden years
By Ryan Satin
FOX Sports WWE Analyst
RK-Bro went through a lot this week on Raw — starting with a quiz bowl and ending with a loss in the center of the ring.
Welcome back to my weekly "Highs and Lows," this time for the 2/7/22 edition of WWE Monday Night Raw featuring Alpha Academy in one of their best segments yet, Riddle and Kevin Owens receiving plenty of screen time and character progression for Alexa Bliss in therapy.
First, here are the match results:
- Alpha Academy defeated Street Profits via pinfall
- AJ Styles defeated Damian Priest via pinfall in a non-title match
- Dominik Mysterio defeated The Miz via roll up
- Bianca Belair defeated Nikki A.S.H. via pinfall
- Kevin Owens defeated Austin Theory via pinfall
- Doudrop defeated Liv Morgan after hitting a middle rope splash
- Riddle defeated Rollins via DQ following interference from Kevin Owens
- Seth Rollins and KO defeated RK-Bro via pinfall (with Rollins pinning Riddle)
RAW HIGHS
The Raw Quiz Bowl
This was a fun segment that reminded me of Raw’s golden years.
Chad Gable, Otis, Riddle and Randy Orton were given the chance to let their personalities shine through, and they all gained because of it. Gable and Otis, especially, as they continue to make the most of every opportunity on TV as of late.
Gable calling George Washington a dumb-dumb had me genuinely laughing out loud. Same for Randy Orton’s knowledge of, um, baking.
As I tweeted during the show, it’s great to see Alpha Academy being utilized to their full potential on a more regular basis. Gable is showing off his charisma, gaining credibility in the ring and becoming a more permanent fixture of the show.
On the other hand, while it may have taken a while to get there for Otis, turning the beloved babyface from Heavy Machinery into a heel is finally starting to pay off. Now, he can still flex his comedic muscle, but also come across as a serious threat in the ring, which provides his character with more longevity in the end.
These two are truly bringing out the best in each other.
Becky Lynch confronts Lita
As a longtime fan, this was just fun to watch.
Becky Lynch is one of the top names in the industry, and seeing her live out her dream of feuding with Lita — her favorite wrestler growing up (and one of mine too) — just feels like a big deal as it plays out on TV.
It was also smart to not have Becky acquiescence to Lita because of her legend status. The following zinger, in particular, made her look more like "The Man" than she has in months, and it was perfect:
I can’t wait to see these two lock up.
Alexa Bliss Makes Progress
I was expecting the latest installment of these videos to end up on my list of lows, but this one helped me see a light at the end of the tunnel, as it was the most we’ve seen Alexa acting like her old self again in a while.
I’m now hopeful these will end with Bliss having been somewhat fixed.
To be honest, if that’s what ends up happening, it’ll be more explanation than I expected. I wrote in my 2022 predictions article that I assumed she’d just show up like her old self again and move on from the darker stuff, as if it never ever happened.
If they instead attempt to actually explain her change of character, whatever that may be, I’ll be happy that months worth of shows weren't just ignored – even if many fans would prefer it that way.
Rollins vs. Riddle
A fresh matchup between two competitors who instantly clicked in the ring together.
Rollins/Riddle had me invested from the minute the bell rang and I was really looking forward to seeing who would come out on top.
Unfortunately …
RAW LOWS
RK-Bro vs. Rollins and Kevin Owens
It’s not that this match was bad by any means, I just didn’t like the decision to cut Riddle versus Rollins short right as things were picking up.
If they had booked RK-Bro vs. Rollins/KO to main event the show from the start, rather than Riddle vs. Rollins, it probably would’ve been a banger, too. Getting me invested in an awesome match, though, only to pull the rug out from underneath and switch to a shorter tag match had me bummed.
Either way, the performers all delivered in both matches.
Is Veer Mahan coming or not?!
These vignettes have been going since NOVEMBER!!
That means you likely bought a Christmas tree sometime after they started, left it up during the entire holiday season, threw it away when the new year began – and now it’s February, and he still hasn’t arrived.
Veer is basically the neighbor who won’t take down his Christmas lights.
These vignettes have gone from piquing my interest at first, to becoming a fun joke on social media about Veer being lost, to now just making me indifferent to the whole thing and having an adverse effect on fans.
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