Backlash is over (read the full review here) and tonight looks like a busy show. Asuka and Nia Jax have a rematch after their double count-out. Drew McIntyre teams with R-Truth to face Bobby Lashley and MVP. Ric Flair will be making an appearance. Dominik Mysterio has taken up Seth Rollins’ invite to come to RAW. And Randy Orton will kick things off to talk about his victory over Edge in ‘The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever’ (it was good, but I wouldn’t go that far).

I’m Amanda and this is the RAW review.

Match Results

Kevin Owens def. Angel Garza

The Viking Profits def. Akira Tozawa and Ninjas

The IIconics def. Liv Morgan & Natalya

Apollo Crews def. Shelton Benjamin

Drew McIntyre & R-Truth def. Bobby Lashley & MVP

Randy Orton def. Christian

The Show

♦ Randy Orton said he did exactly what he said he would do. He humiliated and embarrassed Edge and wrote the final chapter in his story of redemption, but he also gave him closure. He knew when he saw Edge at Royal Rumble that there was no way he could be the competitor he used to be. All Edge needed to do was let him help him, like Edge helped him when he was his lowest. He wasn’t the last man standing at WrestleMania, but he stands there victorious after ‘The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever’, which makes him the greatest wrestler ever.

He needs to thank Edge for rekindling the fire in his gut, for reminding him what it feels like to be the ‘legend killer’. He wishes Edge was there to thank in person, but he isn’t because he tore his triceps straight off the bone. He knew exactly when it happened and he could have stopped the match then, but he had to keep going to make sure Edge was sent home to his family. Now he’s having surgery, but maybe their paths will cross on another nine years.

Christian came out and said Orton was a cold calculating son of a bitch. Edge’s redemption isn’t over. Edge isn’t going to quit and Orton has no say in how the story ends. Orton said Christian is just jealous because it hasn’t been about him, and suggested he wants one more match. Christian said no. Orton said he knows Christian isn’t cleared to compete and suggested an unsanctioned match to get around it. The offer expires at the end of the night and if he doesn’t take him up on it, he’s nothing more than a coward.

♦ Charly Caruso interviewed Angel Garza and Zelina Vega. Caruso tried to ask how Garza feels about potentially costing Andrade the title. Vega cut in and said no one cost anyone the title and no one was arguing. Garza prefers to talk for himself, he likes to flirt with Charly. He was planning to take down Kevin Owens.

Andrade arrived and made Vega look like a liar. There’s definitely some tension there.

Angel Garza, with Zelina Vega, vs Kevin Owens was the first match of the night. Andrade arrived a few moments in and watched from ringside until Garza ended up sprawled on the floor. Andrade helped him up and they started arguing. Vega split them up, told them she was sick of this and left them to it. Garza lost the match to a Kevin Owens stunner. Vega came back to the ring after the match and told them to stop fighting against each other and start fighting together. They complied, but they left the ring on opposite sides and followed her like moody teenagers.

♦ After a recap of Bobby Lashley losing to Drew McIntyre, and Lana’s involvement, MVP yelled at Sarah Schreiber for interrupting their meeting. It wasn’t Lashley’s fault he lost and they were going to fix it. In the ring, after a break, MVP blamed Lana and only Lana for Lashley’s loss and suggested it would have been honourable for McIntyre to offer an immediate rematch.

Lana came to the ring to defend herself she and MVP argued while Lashley looked like he wanted to be somewhere else. When she dragged him into it, he confirmed it was all her fault. He asked when she last laced up a pair of boots or won anything other than a bunch of likes on social media. He accused her of just wanting to be famous. She said if that was true she would have slept with someone far more famous. He told her he wants a divorce.

♦ The Street Profits versus Viking Raiders tag title match didn’t happen at Backlash because they ended up joining forces as The Viking Profits, while in the middle of a street fight, to take on Tozawa’s motorcycle ninjas. They were talking about how to resolve their ongoing deadlock when Tozawa and his ninjas reappeared, including the huge masked ninja (7’3” ex-basketball player Jordan Omogbehin) and demanded a sequel.

The Viking Profits vs Akira Tozawa & Ninjas happened after the break. The big ninja didn’t take part and it was a very quick victory for the Viking Profits. He got in the ring with Tozawa after the match and Tozawa invited them to have a go, but Big Show turned up instead. Big Show laid out the small ninjas and Tozawa backed away with the big guy. Did I fall asleep and that was a weird dream?

♦ Charly Caruso asked Seth Rollins about Dominik Mysterio coming to RAW. Rollins said no one had seen him but he can feel his presence and that’s good. He needs Dominik there because he was on his way to the ring to deliver a message to him and his father.

♦ Christian appeared to be considering Orton’s offer. He doesn’t know if he can let Orton get away with it.

♦ Seth Rollins is still saying Rey Mysterio is a hero who sacrificed himself for the greater good and the future of Monday Night RAW. Mysterio appeared on the big screen and said he didn’t know Dominik was going to go to RAW and he was too late to stop him. He was trying to beg Rollins not to hurt him. Rollins said he doesn’t want to hurt him he wants to help him and encouraged Rey to tell Dominik to join him. When Rey said that isn’t going to happen, Rollins said if he isn’t part of the solution he’s part of the problem and will be sacrificed.

Dominik snuck up behind Rollins while he was pontificating and smashed his face into the canvas then pounded on him and threw him into the steps before Murphy and Theory arrived to help. Dominik managed to run away before they got hold of him.

♦ R-Truth trying to be nice to Bobby Lashley did not go well. It ended with Lashley trying to fight him before the match. Truth didn’t fancy it and left. MVP shouted after him that he could run but he couldn’t hide. They went looking for him after the break and found him when he started shouting about ninjas under the ring. Drew McIntyre turned up before they could do anything. MVP asked them to put both their titles on the line in their tag match. R-Truth accepted and Lashley goaded McIntyre into agreeing.

♦ Liv Morgan & Natalya vs The IIconics was ok, if short. Peyton Royce’s interference stopped Liv Morgan pinning Billie Kay, but Morgan fell foul of an unseen tag and got pinned. After the match The IIconics challenged Sasha Banks and Bayley to a tag title match. It didn’t happen, but they said they know somebody who knows somebody who can make it happen next week.

♦ Big Show spoke to Christian and reminded him how dangerous an unsanctioned match is, and how dangerous Orton can be in one. He wasn’t trying to dissuade him from doing it, just making sure he’d considered the risks.

♦ Backstage, Natalya yelled at Liv Morgan for making rookie mistakes and told her she had no concept of partnership and she understands why Ruby Riott let her go. When Morgan had walked off, Natalya said she had no respect, gratitude, or appreciation. She built the division for a bunch on ingrates and all she got in return was humiliated. Lana walked over and talked about her own humiliation. Will they call their tag team Pity Party?

♦ Christian came to the stage and told Charly Caruso he has nothing to prove to Randy Orton or anyone else, but he won’t be disrespected. If Orton wants to give him one more match, he accepts.

♦ MVP tried to recruit Apollo Crews by telling him to be a smart champion rather than a fighting champion and offering to help navigate those decisions. Crews said thanks but no thanks because if he’s not a fighting champion he’s no champion at all. MVP said the only way Crews would keep the title is with him in his corner.

♦ Ric Flair tried to get Charlotte Flair to tell him her plans, but she wouldn’t. She said she does what she wants and Woo’d at him.

♦ Apollo Crews vs Shelton Benjamin started with a recorded promo from Benjamin saying Crews should have taken MVP’s advice and he better hope that the offer is still on the table after he beats Crews tonight, because he’ll need all the help he can get to stop him taking the title. So, apparently, this was a non-title match. Didn’t matter anyway. After Benjamin got caught trying to pin Crews with his feet on the ropes, Crew rolled him up and pinned him with his hands on the ropes.

♦ Akira Tozawa and the Ninjas threatened to take R-Truth’s title from him, but left when Drew McIntyre turned up. McIntyre tried to impress on Truth the gravity of their situation, that they could lose everything. R-Truth got serious and said he understood. After a break, Truth came back and told McIntyre he fixed it, the only title that will be on the line in the tag match is the WWE Championship. McIntyre was not pleased but Truth asked him to trust him.

♦ Charly Caruso asked if Nia Jax was too big and menacing to deal with. Asuka said Nia Jax started the fight, but she will finish it.

♦ Big Show helped The Viking Raiders and Street Profits decide to finish their Anything you can do we can do better series with a tag title match next week. Then they had a little dance.

♦ Drew McIntyre & R-Truth vs Bobby Lashley & MVP – Tag Team Match for the WWE Championship – started with McIntyre insisting he got things underway. It was all going quite well until Truth tagged himself in and immediately got into trouble. McIntyre eventually got back in and turned things around. R-Truth came back in to deal with Lashley after Lashley broke up a pin on MVP, and they went to the outside. Truth tripped Lashley so he hit the steps and knocked himself out. Drew McIntyre Claymored MVP, but let Truth come in to make the pin off an assisted splash.

♦ Ric Flair tried to talk Christian out of the match. He said Orton is at the top of his game and he’s mean and sadistic and trying to prove a point. No one would blame him for pulling out. Christian didn’t want to hear it.

♦ Sasha Banks and Bayley made an appearance to celebrate their title defence and Bayley’s birthday week. They’re going to be on all three shows this week, including defending their titles against Tegan Nox and Shotzi Blackheart on Wednesday.

Banks said she had a message for The IIconics and they came out to hear it. There was some ‘banter’ then Peyton Royce slapped Sasha Banks and Bayley got so upset she accepted their challenge. Royce and Kay left smiling. Banks was less than pleased.

♦ Asuka (C) vs Nia Jax – RAW Women’s Championship match – was interesting. Going into a break Jax powerbombed Asuka on the outside and it looked like we might be about to get a new champion. When we came back, Asuka was starting to recover. Jax did manage to deliver her Samoan drop to Asuka, but Asuka got her foot under the ropes. Jax got annoyed and shoved the official. He was about to disqualify her when Asuka rolled her up, so he fast-counted her instead.

♦ Randy Orton asked Charly Caruso if she thinks Christian is a legend. She said ‘Absolutely’. He agreed and talked about what unsanctioned means. It means no rules or regulations, and it means that the legend of Christian will be destroyed by the three most destructive letters in sports entertainment, RKO.

Ric Flair came out before Randy Orton vs Christian could get on with their unsanctioned match and tried to put a stop to it. Christian said he had to do it so Flair low-blowed him and left. Randy Orton delivered a punt kick, just like he did to Edge then very carefully turned Christian over, holding his head steady, and pinned him. Orton apologised to the unconscious Christian then yelled at him and said it was his fault for coming here. He let the medics attend to him and hovered nearby alternating between telling Christian that they were going to take care of him and that he didn’t want to do that and yelling at him that it was his own fault. This is his livelihood and he had to. And that was the end of the show.

I’m not going to lie, RAW was weird tonight. I kind of liked it. An unsanctioned whatever that was, Big Show, Ninjas… there’s a lot there. Next week, Rey Mysterio will return to RAW and we’ll see a women’s tag title defence. See you then.