Raw Reax - 2/22/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Raw.

You know, I always wondered why more fights don't happen before the show. It's not like the wrestlers get there right at 8 p.m. Just think what the traffic would be like!

You KNOW someone's got the theory they had Ambrose do a stretcher job before the show so he wouldn't take away reaction from Reigns.

It is pretty cool to see Vince's father mentioned, and Vince acknowledging the lineage of promoters.

I was kind of hoping Triple H would win the award to cement his status as the corporate heel heir apparent. Although I do want to see Ronda Rousey vs. Stephanie at WM32.

Stephanie is a pretty fun character sometimes.

WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT.

Shane can still dance. And he can still get a big reaction. Wow.

I love the interaction between Shane and his family. People have wanted to see Shane-O-Mac for years!

Where the heck has Shane been in kayfabe?

I mean, Stephanie has been helping run the ship for a while now.

Whoa. Shane's clearly reading the dirtsheets. Shane does legitimately own a lot of WWE stock still, so he would have an indication of how things are doing.

I like the idea that Shane has been waiting for the right moment to pounce.

I can only imagine what Vince McMahon VIII will inherit after the first Wrestlemania on Jupiter.

After Donald Trump bought Raw, they probably put some safeguards in place to prevent that scenario from going down again.

Why would a 45-year-old Shane think he can win a match against anyone Vince picks? He hasn't had a match in years.

Whoa. This got kind of dark with the beatings talk.

Wait, should we be cheering for Shane or Undertaker? Taker will be in his home state.

That's a pretty big match. Unless Shane really has something up his sleeve (Cena? Angle?), he was crazy for accepting this. And, really, I wonder how good that can be. Shane's a lot of fun, but I don't know if he's the right choice here.

New Day vs. LoN is pretty crazy.

- Neville/Dragons vs. New Day:
I'm still surprised Kalisto retained, considering he can go back to being a tag team guy now.

I like Big E vs. Neville. Two former NXT Champions who mesh well.

This is a pretty good match. They all work pretty well.

Impressive moves to end things, although it felt a little "ROH."

Hopefully the Authority angle ends in a few months, after Reigns beats HHH. They should take a vacation for a while, with Reigns banishing them. Of course, Shane winning will put them out of power, but they'll still want a rematch against Reigns. After that, they should disappear for a few months at least (until there's a real storyline reason for them to return).

Heyman and Brock are the best act in wrestling, hands-down. They're definitely a big deal.

Brock's nothing if not vengeful. And destructive.

Enjoyable Heyman promo so far. I like the knock on parkour-style wrestling. I'd love to see someone like Brock wreak havoc in ROH.

I was kind of hoping to see the Wyatts go after Brock here. I'd LOVE to see a gauntlet match at WM32.

LOL SUPERDEAN DOESN'T SELL ANYTHING. There's determination, then there's superhuman ability.

Ambrose has a damn death-wish. That match will be incredible, though. Ambrose pulling out all the plunder will be fun.

I'm liking the heel Dudleys so far. They're right about accomplishing more than putting people through tables.

I kind of want to see The Dudleys fight Rikishi now.

- Usos vs. Ascension:
Konnor and Viktor are pretty good, I think. Not great, but better than they get credit for.

That was pretty good while it lasted. Of course, The Ascension aren't going to win. The Usos did need to get some credibility back to look like threats against Bubba and D-Von.

Jericho's a really lame face, but I'm glad he's putting over Styles' legacy.

I don't see Styles as WWE Champion material yet, but it's definitely something that can happen before the end of 2017. I wouldn't mind him winning MITB.

I'm glad the Outcasts are adding to this segment. It was getting saccharine.

Fun stuff from the Outcasts.

- Y2J/Styles vs. Axel/Slater:
Styles is definitely really impressive as an athlete.

That was good. Quick, but good.

I'm surprised we didn't see HHH earlier. I guess he was putting something in the works for later tonight. Or maybe he was running the show since Vince and Stephanie were in the ring? Like, if there was something wrong backstage while those two were in the ring, he'd be the one they'd need to go to.

I kind of want to see Roman team with New Day against LoN since they set that up in a way at Fastlane.

Golden Truth is mostly entertaining. The line about the cake being like the two of them was great. Can we get a Golden Truth/Sandango feud? That could be a lot of fun.

- Ryback/Kane/Show vs. Wyatt/Harper/Rowan:
I'm still unpleasantly surprised by the Wyatts losing last night. I hope they have a good plan for what the Family is doing at WM32.

This is good enough so far.

Props to Ryback. He's upped his game in the ring instead of just being a one-dimensional big guy.

Harper's the gem of the Wyatt Family, for sure. He's pretty talented.

That was mostly good. Ryback leaving kind of came out of nowhere, though.

I'm fine with Ryback being a singles star again, but I really don't want to see him feud with Kane or Show.

- Sasha vs. Naomi:
This is mostly good. Naomi's definitely the HBK of Naomina.

Fine match to keep building Sasha for a title match.

I was wondering when we'd see the Divas' Champ.

Wow. That post-match wasn't great. I hope we do get a triple threat at WM32. What does Brie do after her loss?

Sheamus vs. Reigns should be pretty good. They work together well.

No way does Shane have a chance against Taker unless he has Angle or Cena on speed-dial.

- Reigns vs. Sheamus:
I enjoy Sheamus' work a good deal. He's a solid veteran.

Good match so far. I'm not really looking forward to Reigns overcoming the odds so much going into WM32, but that's kind of the deal for a face coming up against an evil cabal.

I think Reigns vs. HHH should be pretty good. How long until the sledgehammer comes into play?

Hunter's a sadistic heel, as always.

WHOA. We haven't seen someone with a crimson mask in a while.

DAMN. The Game's no pushover for Roman at Mania.

More wrestling coming up.