WWE Monday Night Raw 11/20/2023

WWE Monday Night Raw 11/20/2023

Last week's show is here: https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2023/11/wwe-monday-night-raw-11132023.html 

Drew McIntyre is in the ring to start. He said he's been called names over what he did last week. Drew said he's been the same person the entire time and said if you've turned on him, you've never been a fan in the first place. He said he gave Jey something Jey never gave him - time and a look in the eyes before attacking him. Drew said he didn't remember Jey apologizing to him or anyone else for screwing them over with Bloodline.

Drew asks why he should get over it? He said Jey cost him the biggest moment of his life in front of his family. He said Clash at the Castle was going to be his moment and Jey and his family took it from him. Drew said he has not joined Judgment Day but will be on their team in Wargames. He said it's because Rhea gave him something nobody else could - Jey Uso in a cage. He said he will drop him if he sees him. Jey's music hits and he says, "your @ss belongs to me, get out here".

Jey does his usual strutting and stuff. He says Drew should catch his "yeetdown". Jey tries to enter the ring then Judgment Day gets behind Drew. Seth Rollins then comes down and then Cody and Sami join too. Adam Pearce gets in and says we are not doing this tonight. He said Wargames is Saturday and said nobody is fighting. He said whoever throws the first punch in a fight will cost their team the advantage.

Pearce says the faces need a 5th team member for Wargames and they need to do it by the end of the night (they just did this angle on Smackdown).  Pearce also said they need to pick their representative for the advantage match tonight. He said you pick, or I'll pick for you. 

Damian Priest tells Rhea that Drew being in the team is good business, but she should have discussed it with him. Rhea said Drew is unpredictable, but it all worked out in the end of the day. Rhea agrees they should have discussed it together. Priest says he should be in the advantage match. Rhea says we need to wait for Drew and discuss it together.

Raquel Rodriguez vs Nia Jax 

RR kicks her to start then hits corner spears. Nia hits a corner uranage then bangs her head off the mat. Nia face shoves her. They trade forearms and RR spears her out of the ring. RR then comes off the apron with a crossbody on the outside. RR is pushed into the rails then thrown backwards in the post. RR then splats on the landing. We return from break and Nia stretches her around the post. Nia headbutts her then cobra clutches her. Nia gets on her back and RR's knees give out as she tries to stand up.

Nia headbutts her then is corner hurricanrana'd. RR lariats her in the back then chest kicks her. RR corkscrew elbows her vader bomb style then her back gives out when she lifts her. Nia hits her from behind and hits a hard senton. Nia goes to climb the the ropes, RR tries to powerbomb her but Nia falls down on her. Nia then banzai drops her and wins it.

I liked it. It was a good heavyweight battle and they sold Nia's size well.

 We see video of Xia Li training for the match with Becky Lynch tonight. She kicks a bag around then steps on the picture of Becky on it.

Judgment Day are in the back. Priest asks where's Rhea guy. Drew then walks in and says he hears Priest wants to do the Advantage Match. Drew said he should do it instead. Drew said he doesn't like them but despises Jey Uso. Priest says he doesn't like Drew either. They both argue over who should take it easy. Priest then gives him the spot in the Advantage Match. He tells Drew to show his worth and get the advantage. Priest then tells Rhea that he better get the advantage.

Cody's Wargames team is in the back talking. Jey and Seth both want to fight Drew tonight in the Advantage Match. Seth says we need Jey. Jey says Drew has been on his back since he came to Raw and asks for him tonight. They then agree Jey takes on Drew in the Advantage Match. Sami asks who their 5th member will be and Sami asks if SD guys are not off limits (hinting at Kevin Owens). Cody said he has an old friend who he said will have their backs.

Becky Lynch vs Xia Li

Lyra Valkyria is watching in the front row. Becky and Li shove each other.Li shoulders her over and then is rolled up. Becky's leg is swept then she hits armdrags. Xia is thrown out then Becky baseball slides her. Becky hits her off the apron then bangs Xia's head off the apron. Becky knees her over the 2nd rope then takes a high kick while she's on the apron.

Becky goes down then we go to break and return. Becky armdrags Xia then chinbreakers her. They trade shots and Becky flying forearms her. Becky exploders her for 2. Xia screw kicks her on the mat then Becky suplexes her into the armbar. Xia rolls her up for 2 then spinning torture rack drops her for 2.

Xia sleepers her from the apron. Becky hits punches on Xia up top then 2nd rope superplexes her for 2. Xia armdrags her and spinning high kicks her. Becky is thrown out. Xia is pushed into the post outside. They hockey fight and Becky uranage's her to win.

Some parts of this were okay and some parts were very simple and basic due to Xia's talent level. Becky has the most annoying move names of anyone else on the roster and none of them sound authentic.

Damage Ctrl head down to the ring after. Charlotte, Bianca and Shotzi follow then nail the heels from behind. They all brawl and security is brought down to break this up. Pearce also ends up in the midlde of this as everyone brawls.

Ludwig Kaiser is walking around in the back. Giovanni Vinci goes up to him and asks if everything is okay. Kaiser said nothing is alright and he knows it. He's mad at him for getting involved last week. Vinci said he will do what is best for Imperium and said Gunther is happy with what he did. Kaiser said Vinci is his responsibility, and what he says goes. He tells Vinci to stay here and let him take care of Johnny Gargano.

Zoey Stark talks about Rhea Ripley through a taped video. She said she's the hunter and the people against her are her prey.

Johnny Gargano vs Ludwig Kaiser

JG hits a forearm and chop. Kaiser shoulders him over and hits some shots. JG goes up and over in the corner then hurricanrana's him. JG dropkicks him then step up enzugiri's him. JG is put on the top rope and enzugiri'd. JG comes off the 2nd rope and headscissors him over.

JG dropkicks him out of the ring then gets hit on his tope attempt. Kaiser then running euros him on the floor. We go to break and return. Kaiser hits punches on the apron then he hits JG as he tries to slingshot in. JG slingshot spears him then JG rolls him into a kick. JG topes him outside. Kaiser blocks his slingshot ddt then they trade pin attempts.

JG buzzsaw kicks him then 2nd rope swinging flatliners him for 2. Kaiser hits a nice spinning lariat for 2. Kaiser grabs him like a side slam then flips him backwards. JG la mistica drops him then Kaiser side rolling death valley drivers him. Vinci comes down and Kaiser tells him to leave. JG kicks Kaiser then hits a slingshot ddt to win it.

I wasn't a big fan of this. Gargano is super indy with all of his offense either being slingshot moves or bad step up enzugiri's. This also went longer than it needed to. I'm not sure how Vinci was supposed to make me react here. He was told not to come down, did anyway then cost Kaiser the match. It doesn't make Vinci look good, it makes him look like the idiot Kaiser treats him as.

Chelsea Green and Piper Niven complain to Adam Pearce about having to share locker rooms. Natalya and Nox then come in to complain then Chance and Carter and Indi/LeRae also come in to complain. Pearce said everyone will get a title match. Maxxine and then Ivy come in. Pearce says they can get a shot too in a fatal four way and mocks them. Ivy said they were here for something else and Maxine tells her to shoosh. Green says she will talk to Nick Aldis about this and Pearce says to tell him he said hi.

Dom and Rhea go up to Zoey and Shayna, who are in their clubhouse. Shayna said they were coming to check the clubhouse out. Zoey said Rhea is focused on everything but the one thing she should be focused on - her. Zoey said the clubhouse is cute and said Rhea should take a hard look at the women's title as it's coming home to Zoey. Rhea said most people wouldn't survive this stunt she pulled and said she will get her beating at Survivor Series.

#1 Contenders Match - Tegan Nox and Natalya vs Katana Chance and Kayden Carter vs Indi Hartwell and Candice LeRae vs Maxxine Dupri and Ivy Nile

Natty takes a backslide from Ivy then Nox PK's Ivy. Ivy flying kicks Natty in the corner then Dupri rolls up Natty. Dupri rolls and kips up out of a wristlock, doing a bad job of it. Ivyy rolls up Natty then takes a russian legsweep. Indi slams Ivy and euros her. Indi kicks her in the side of the head then picks up and drops LeRae on Ivy.

Carter flips Chance onto LeRae then Indi is thrown out. Chance is flipped by Carter onto LeRae. Carter walks up the buckles with help from Chance and dives on everyone. Ivy jumps off the apron and forearms ppeople then Dupri dives on people off the 2nd rope.

We go to break and return. Natty slams Chance thn michinoku drivers her for 2. We get a tower of doom of spot though Chance isn't superplexed off of it. Chance is flipped off the top onto Nox and Natty. Ivy back enzugiri's Indi then is dropped onto her by Nox. LeRae top rope dropkicks Carter then Chance step up enzugiri's LeRae. Natty sharpshooters Chance and Ivy breaks it up.

Dupri slams Nox then starts dancing. Dupri then does the caterpillar elbow drop. Dupri suplexes Nox for 2. Iy fling kicks Nox in the corner then Nox takes a double suplex. Ivy and Dupri do stereo kip ups together. Duprin crossbodies Nox off the buckles but Nox rolls through and wins it.

It was a spotfest and not particularly that good. It went longer than it needed to and the execution was rough.

Gunther walks in on Kaiser and Vinci arguing. Kaiser said he told Vinci to stay away then Vinci came in. Gunther says Kaiser never listens and said he thought he would be able to uphold the prestige of their group. Gunther said he applauds Vinci's efforts and said maybe he put the wrong person in charge. Gunther says to watch him tonight and learn a thing or two, then tells them to work this out.

A ref grabs Adam Pearce in the back. Adam walks in on a giant midcard gathering. Woods says the women all got shots at the tag titles and he wants one. Adam says they can't do this tonight, but will do it next week in tag team turmoil. Tozawa then holds up a Detroit Lions belt and starts dancing. Nick Aldis and Adam Pearce then talk. Adam says "let's have a conversation" and Nick says, "yeah, let's".

Miz TV with Gunther

Miz wants to talk about respect. He says Gunther has a lack of respect then Gunther comes out. Gunther says he has zero respect for him. Gunther says this sacred ring is for fighting and competition then says Miz is just an entertainer. Miz says he's an entertainer and proud of it. He says he gets it done inside the ring and out. He talks about Macho Man, Rick Rude and Bret Hart. He said he wanted to be the kid Bret gave his sunglasses to. Miz said he strived, learned and battled for 20 years, hoping he could hold the same title his heroes held. Miz says they are remembered becuase they aren't a one note robot like Gunther.

Gunther says he is entertained by him and finds him amusing. Miz said he changed over time and says that's what makes an entertainer immortal. He says he will do what it takes to survive and win. Miz said we don't know much about Gunther and won't know until he hits the bottom. He said then we will find out if Gunther deserves their respect. He asks if Gunther can climb the top again. Miz said if Gunther doesn't respect him, he will beat it into him.

Gunther said everyone thinks he will face Miz on Saturday. He said he sees through him and says he's facing someone who is exactly like everyone else - Little Mike Mizanin. Some little weirdo who got bullied in high school and idolized all these heroes. He then said he graduated from high school and got made fun of by all of his heroes. He said they made him understand that he does not belong in this sport. Gunther said Miz does not belong in this sport or ring. He said he belongs behind the guard rail with all the other little weirdos who are just like him. The crowd chants "USA" at this for some reason. Gunther says it's the smallest form of some identification and says Miz is small and insecure just like "Little Mike". Gunther says Miz hasn't been bullied enough then forearm shoves him. He tells Miz to do something and to defend himself. Gunther face shoves him and says to stand up for himself. Miz then starts hitting Gunther and is facekicked down.

Gunther shoves the title in his face and tells him to have a good look. Miz then low blows him and hits a skull crushing finale. Miz then holds up the title and celebrates.

This was a fantastic segment. They really nailed the story of this one and even as someone who doesn't like Miz, they made me want to cheer for him here. Great work from both guys. 

Jey Uso and Seth Rollins talk in the back. Seth said he meant no disrespect earlier. He said Jey has to get the win and they need the advantage tonight. Seth said Jey has been in Wargames and knows what it takes to win it. He says to come back in one piece. Jey says he's got him.

Valhalla and Ivar talk. Val says if you put your hand in a wolf's mouth, you will get bitten. Ivar says Reed disrespected him and angered the gods. Ivar says the earth will shake and says he challenges Reed for next week.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs Chad Gable

Chad wrestlers him on the mat and slams him down. Chad hits armdrags then SN hits knees in the corner. Chad dragon screws him then enzugiri's him. Chad triangles him over the top rope then belly to belly suplexes him over the top rope. Chad cannonballs him off the apron and poses.

We go to break and return. SN knees him in the gut and chinlocks him. Chad hits some shots and kicks him in the gut. Chad flipping neckbreakers him then SN sliding germans him. SN 2nd rope flying knees him. Chad flips out of the reverse slam then rolls into an ankle lock on him. Chad hits a dominator then top rope headbutts him for 2.

SN takes the turnbuckle pad off and spinning heel kicks him. Chad germans him for 2 then does a dangerous release dragon suplex. Chad fires up and SN gets his knees up on Chad's moonsault. SN reverse sitout slams him then Chad ankle locks him. SN tries to push him into the exposed buckle, Chad blocks it then is rolled up and pinned.

The early part of it wasn't that great but it got a little better later on before the weak finish.

Drew McIntyre walks up to Judgment Day in the back. Drew says he doesn't need any help and Priest says "great, because we weren't offering it". Rhea tells him to get the advantage and Drew says he will and will take out Jey Uso. Priest says, "you better do it".

Bronson Reed is in the back. He talks about Ivar and said Ivar backed away from him last week. He says Ivar is a cosplayer and not a true warrior. He said the challenge is accepted and said his long boat won't accept the crashing waves of the tsunami. He said he won't survive Bronson Reed.

We get a package on Wargames.

Sami Zayn and Seth (again) go up to Jey Uso. They tell him he's got this and hype him up. Jey says he will handle business. Cody asks about the 5th member and they said they have no luck. Cody says the 5th member picked up the phone and is in. They don't tell us who it is though.

Wargames Advantage Match - Jey Uso vs Drew McIntyre

They trade shots. The crowd chants "yeet" with each shot from Jey. Jey uppercuts him. Jey hits some shots to the body then drew back elbows him. Drew stomps Jey's head then is thrown out. Jey topes him and bangs Drew's head off the post. We go to break and return.

Drew stomps Jey then they exchange shots. Jey enzugiri's him from the apron then top rope crossbodies him. Jey goes to tope and gets nailed with a forearm. Jey's back is rammed into the apron and rails. Drew presses Jey's head against the post with his foot.

Drew grabs Jey by the chin and talks trash. Jey slaps him then spinning enzugiri's him. Jey goes to springboard and is headbutted down to the floor. Drew picks up for a slam and swings him across the announcer's table.

We go to break and return. Jey hits punches then superkicks him in the gut. Jey samoan drops him for 2. Drew neckbreakers him and goes for a claymore kick but is jumping kicked instead. Drew hits a future shock ddt and wins it.

We kind of knew Drew was winning this since Wargames works better with the heels getting the advantage. It was okay but not great and neither did anything too wild.

Drew pounds on Jey after and throws him out. Rhea comes out to cheer him off. Jey grabs a chair then Judgment Day pounds on him. Cody/Seth/Sami make the save with chairs. Judgment Day takes chair shots. Cody says he's glad the heels got the advantage and said he's glad they have a star like Drew. Cody said they found a 5th member and says it's someone they have a legacy with. Cody references Randy Orton in various ways and says the crowd is right when they chant for Randy.

Overall thoughts: The show was lame until the Miz/Gunther segment then got better. While they did a good job in making you want to see the PPV, the overall show wasn't that great. I found this one hard to sit through.