We’re in the limbo between Christmas and New Year, which usually means a fun kind of show. But it’s the go home for WWE Day 1, so there’s some business to be done too. On the fun side, The Miz and Maryse are renewing their wedding vows. On the business side, we have a US title match, with Dolph Ziggler taking the shot he won by count-out last week. The RK-Bro-nament finals take place tonight, featuring Street Profits and Rey & Dominik Mysterio. Randy Orton goes one on one with Otis. And Austin Theory gets another chance at Finn Balor in his quest to suck up to the boss.

I’m Amanda and this is the RAW review.

Match Results

Riddle def. Chad Gable

Randy Orton def. Otis

Dana Brooke & Reggie def. Tamina & R-Truth

Street Profits def. Rey & Dominik Mysterio

AJ Styles def. Apollo Crews

Kevin Owens def. Cedric Alexander

Dolph Ziggler def. Damian Priest (DQ)

The Show

♦ RK-Bro opened the show to have a chat. Riddle was wearing a party hat and trying to make Randy Orton read a Christmas card. He told everyone we’re going to love what they do in 2022. Orton said the only way he’s going to have a happy new year is if he beats Otis, and the only way they’re going to have a happy new year is if they retain the tag titles at Day 1. Riddle has been doing some self-reflection – or maybe LSD, it’s not always easy to tell. Orton showed him footage from last week and Riddle suggested Otis might be un-RKO-able.

Eventually, Chad Gable and Otis interrupted the increasingly bizarre waffle. Gable talked up Otis, and himself – he recently got his master’s degree with a 4.0 GPA and can’t stop telling people – and said that Otis will send Orton limping into Day 1. It doesn’t matter who wins there, because the titles will soon be around Alpha Academy’s waists.

Riddle challenged Gable to a match and Gable mocked him for it before accepting. Orton was exasperated but supportive, and still giving the impression he’s loving every minute of being part of something so over.

So, Riddle vs Chad Gable was the first match of the show and it was good. Riddle’s great when he’s not talking and Gable is a former Olympian, so it should be. It wasn’t a long match though. Riddle hit Gable with a knee in the face and the Floating Bro to secure the win, then immediately got bulldozed by Otis.

Randy Orton vs Otis started during a break. Orton was quickly in trouble after taking a splash and a diving headbutt, and his first attempt at an RKO saw his flying out of the ring. He caught a break on the outside, evading the charging Otis and letting him smash himself into the post. Orton got the draping DDT, but his ribs were hurting from the splash. He tried again for an RKO, but got caught and powerslammed into the mat. Orton moved when he came off the top turnbuckle and finally got the RKO while Otis was still staggering to his feet. RK-Bro putting two ticks in the win column before Day 1.

Riddle congratulated him post-match and gave Orton his present, a hug. The crowd had to encourage Orton to accept it. Riddle made it weird by telling Orton he wouldn’t tell anyone and no one would know, but he got the hug. Orton faked out RKO’ing him, then hugged him again. Very sweet.

♦ The Miz and Maryse will have a Special Guest Officiant for their vow renewal.

♦ Kevin Patrick asked Kevin Owens about the event of last week and showed him a video message from Big E. The champ talked about everything the match at Day 1 means to him. Every difficult step of his journey.

Owens said Big E was wrong, it’s about Kevin Owens’ story. He also told Kevin Patrick he can’t be called Kevin anymore and gave him a week to change it, then decided it should be Burt. Anyway, Owens got himself into the match. The plan to take out Lashley was all his idea. And he’s walking out of Day 1 as champion.

♦ Veer Mahaan is still Coming Soon to RAW.

♦ Dana Brooke & Reggie vs Tamina & R-Truth was fun in its way. I still find mixed tag matches pointless, especially when the women in the ring are more than capable of kicking the guys’ asses. Case in point, Tamina superkicked Reggie in the face in the changeover and damned near took his head off. Dana Brooke and Reggie insisted on tagging in and out, even when R-Truth and Tamina had already done it. Truth tagged himself in on Tamina and got pinned by Reggie, so she attempted to punch him out after the match. He ducked and escaped so she went for Brooke and Reggie. She missed and Brooke gave her a splash in the corner before they left.

♦ Megan Morant asked Nikki A.S.H. if WWE made the right decision barring her from ringside for Ripley’s match last week. Nikki said Rhea didn’t need her.  They’re tag team partners because they want to be not because they need to be. She hopes she inspires Ripley, and Ripley’s pep talks help put her in the right mindset. Zelina Vega and Carmella try to get in their heads and bring them down every week, but they’ve just made them stronger. She wants to see them put their money where their mouths are, so she and Ripley are challenging them to a tag title rematch.

♦ Migos will be special guests at Day 1.

♦ We got a big build package for Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar at Day 1. Is there anyone better at what they do than Paul Heyman?

♦ Street Profits vs Rey & Dominik Mysterio – RK-Bro-nament Final – was great. RK-Bro watched from backstage instead of joining commentary. The Mysterios had the upper hand going into the break, after taking Ford and Dawkins down at ringside. Ford had to save Dawkins from a Rey Mysterio pin and would have pinned Rey from a frog splash across three-quarters of the ring if it wasn’t for Dominik.

Dominik took Dawkins down on the outside before Ford took a 619 from Rey, who then went to the outside to put Dawkins back down. It looked like a perfect finish, but Dominik’s splash on Ford only got two. Dawkins prevented the double 619 by grabbing Rey. Once he’d been flung from the ring, Dominik took the double team blockbuster finisher and got pinned.

It will be Street Profits challenging RK-Bro at Day 1.

♦ The Miz was not impressed by the flowers that were delivered for the vow renewal. Eric Bischoff is the guest officiant he’s lined up.

♦ AJ Styles came out for a chat. Solo of course. He immediately asked where Omos was as he’s in a ring and Omos said the next time he saw him would be in a match. He thinks Omos is selfish and ungrateful and also thinks he’s scared of facing him in case he doesn’t live up to his potential. That’s ok, Styles was scared of that once, at the start of the twenty-year career he’s got over Omos.

NXT 2.0’s Grayson Waller was in the front row waving a sign declaring the Grayson Waller Effect “Phenomenal”. Styles invited him into the ring and introduced him to the crowd. Apparently, Styles visited 2.0 last week and this segment might have made more sense if I’d watched it. Waller wants to come to RAW though and he’s thinking he can take Styles’ spot. Styles offered to show him around, introduce him to commentary, and give him a Phenomenal Forearm.

Apollo Crews and Commander Azeez arrived to mock Styles for losing his giant. The Commander challenged Styles to a match and Styles accepted.

AJ Styles vs Commander Azeez didn’t happen though because Crews took the match off him in the ads. So we got AJ Styles vs Apollo Crews instead. Another really good match. Very competitive. A program between the two of them could be incredible. Styles finished this one with a Styles Clash and just managed to avoid Azeez as he came towards him. While Azeez was tending to Crews, Styles hit him with a Phenomenal Forearm and punched him when he came back at him.

♦ Carmella answered Nikki A.S.H.’s challenge. Queen Zelina is probably celebrating her birthday, so happy birthday to her. She accepted and played some mind games at the same time. She said a lot of nice things about how great Rhea Ripley is and a lot of horrible and untrue things about Nikki A.S.H. being a disappointment and a letdown.

♦ Seth Rollins delivered his build promo from home. He said that as it’s the holidays he’ll let Owens take all the credit for their plans because at Day 1 he’s taking what’s his.

♦ Kevin Owens had a great Christmas with his family and main-evented at Madison Square Garden last night. And on Saturday the entire world will get to rejoice when he becomes WWE Champion at Day 1. He’s the only one of the fatal four-way participants who showed up tonight, which makes him the best. The odds in a fatal four-way aren’t great, but he thinks they’re better than they could be. Last week, Seth Rollins Stomped Bobby Lashley’s head into the steps last week, which helps him because it means Lashley will be going for Rollins. Big E will be going for Lashley after Lashley speared him. And he and Rollins are besties right now. Put all together, it’s the recipe for him becoming champion.

MVP came out and told Owens he was wrong. He complimented Owens on the execution of his plans, but Lashley hasn’t forgotten about the powerbomb on the apron so he’s coming for him as well as Rollins. He read a text from Lashley out, threatening to rip Owens’ arms off his body, but Owens still didn’t look worried.

Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander joined MVP. They want back in the Hurt Business. Owens interrupted MVP starting to tell them he had a test for them, by telling them to cut to the bottom line, get in the ring, and have a match.

Kevin Owens vs Cedric Alexander started after the break. MVP joined commentary and talked about Bobby Lashley for most of it. He said Owens couldn’t do what he did to Alexander to Lashley, just as Owens finished the match with a stunner.

Shelton Benjamin got a Stunner as well when he got into the ring and demanded a microphone.

♦ The build for Becky Lynch versus Liv Morgan at Day 1 was done via build package, introduced by Mike Rome. Slightly worrying that neither of them even sent in a video message, with rumours of a slew of positive covid tests in the WWE locker room.

♦ Damian Priest (C) vs Dolph Ziggler – US Championship Match – was very good too. And as a special treat, it was a proper one on one without Robert Roode interfering from ringside. Before the match, Priest said he lost control last week and the Damian came out. He enjoyed planting Roode’s head into the floor even though it cost him the match. If he’s disrespected he’ll feel the blind rage and that could hurt him against someone with the strategic abilities of Ziggler.

They drifted to the outside heading into the break, after Priest tipped Ziggler out of the ring, and Priest threw Ziggler into the chairs in the timekeeper’s area with a clatter. By the time we returned, they were back in the ring like it had never happened and Ziggler was in the offensive.

A DDT came close to crowning a new US Champion, but Priest kicked out at the last moment. Stupidly, Ziggler then went down the trash-talk and slap route. Damian Priest let out his dark side and got himself disqualified when he wouldn’t stop punching Ziggler and let him out of the corner.

Priest lost the match but not the title, then destroyed Ziggler at ringside. Seemed like a pointless finish that did neither of them any favours.

♦ So the final segment of the final RAW of 2021 went to The Miz and Maryse’s vow renewal. The ring ropes had been removed and the ring decorated with an arch and some flowers. Eric Bischoff said a few words about then brought out the happy couple. The Miz tripped on the stairs getting into the ring. Maryse, obviously, looked beautiful.

Before they got to the vow renewal, Miz talked about what a year they’ve had. He explained that the vow renewal was to give people a lift before he proves Old Edge has gone and New Edge can’t live up to his standards. He’s going to dominate him at Day 1. They both insulted the town a fair bit as well.

The crowd booed through Maryse’s vows, which included a reference to being better than Edge. She cried. He had a crack at doing his in French until she told him to give up. The crowd booed through his too and seemed in favour of them splitting up.

Weirdly, Eric Bischoff asked for objections after the vows and said we all knew how it was going to turn out. Sure enough, Edge arrived.

He said he wasn’t there to ruin anything and told them all the horrible things he could say but wouldn’t. At Day 1 they have a match and he’s going to beat Miz’ ass.

Miz said they knew he’d show up and they wanted him to have a front row to see what true love looks like. Edge admitted they’d embarrassed him over the last few weeks, so before he beats Miz at Day 1 he was going to embarrass him. Initially, nothing happened, then Edge asked if they’d wanted it to be a white wedding and gave them a Brood Bath.

RAW closed out 2021 with Edge laughing on the ramp and The Miz and Maryse yelling in the ring covered in gunk.

WWE gave us some good matches tonight, but not a lot from the women’s division. Day 1 is on Saturday and the card looks like a decent way to kick off the year. Join us next week to find out if it was.