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Monday Night Raw this week was a show that had some great moments of narrative progression and others many moments of just plain terrible booking. Whichever you prefer to paint an overall picture of last night's edition of Monday Night Raw, WWE did pull off a lot of surprising moments on the flagship show.
From legends returning to unexpected allies joining forces, WWE tired their bests to make Raw memorable this week, and while a large number of their efforts were largely terrible, at least they left fans with a taste of what's to come in the following weeks leading up to the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view, the Super Showdown event in Australia and the first ever women's pay-per-view Evolution.
#1 The Sheild get arrested
The Shield returned to Raw this week to get revenge for the beatdown they received from Braun Strowman, Drew McIntyre, and Dolph Ziggler last week on Raw, and fans knew that things were about to get chaotic, as Ambrose, Rollins, and Reigns stormed the ring only to be stopped by the entire Raw locker room.
There were superstars everywhere as Ambrose, Rollins, and Reigns tried to pick apart their foes, but as the brawl spilled backstage, acting GM Baron Corbin had to call the police to take the unruly trio away from the arena. While superstars being arrested in the WWE is nothing new, this move by WWE was something fans never thought would happen in this fued.
#2 Chad Gable and Bobby Roode impresses
Chad Gable is possibly one of the most athletically gifted wrestlers on WWE's roster. This week WWE put the odd team of Bobby Roode and Chad Gable against The Ascension, and many didn't expect this match to be fun at all, but Gable just flipped the script and had one of his most memorable performances in moths.
From suplexing a man twice his size to going on a flurry that saw him pick up the win, Gable proved that he deserved to be in a title fued soon or a heated programme, as the star has the skills to put on exceptional matches any time, anywhere, and his performance on Raw perfectly unexpected.
#3 Unexpected new Raw Tag Team Champions
Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler came to Raw with the purpose of aiding Braun Strowman with his goal of taking out The Shield but instead left with being crowned the new Raw Tag Team Champions. After taking out The Revival, Drew and Dolph dominated The B Team in the tag team title match as they took The Revival's place in that scheduled encounter.
This was the best thing that has happened to the Raw tag team division in a long time, as two veteran superstars at the helm of the division are the best thing WWE could have done to get the division out of the slump it is in right now.
#4 Kevin Owens returns
Kevin Owens made headlines last week on Raw when he decided to publicly quit after losing to Seth Rollins in their IC Title match. This was one of the best storylines WWE could have booked this year, as Owens is just that damn good in keeping kayfabe intact, but WWE decided to shockingly bring the man back after just one week of sitting on the sidelines.
It wasn't shocking due to Owens returning although quitting it was disappointing to see "the prizefighter" return to take out Bobby Lashley of all people. This unexpected moment should not have happened as it ruined the mystique of Owen's rejuvenation.
#5 Braun Strowman's enemies become his allies
The concluding moments of Raw saw Braun Strowman take out a valiant Finn Balor, and just as Strowman and his new partners were about to destroy Balor, The Shield returned from jail to take on Strowman. But before they could even meet the newly formed trio in action, it was heel city at ringside as all the heels of the red brand came put to destroy Ambrose, Rollins, and Reigns.
What was even more shocking was the fact that superstars like Elias, The Ascension, Jinder Mahal, and Kevin Owens of all people came out to aid Strowman after being destroyed by "the monster among men" for months on end. This was one of the most bizarre sights WWE has thought of in a long time, as the history between these superstars and the colliding narratives from either end made no sense what so ever.
#6 Dana Brooke has enough
This week on Raw Dana Brooke had enough of being part of Titus Worldwide and decided to leave the group, but while that may be a surprise to many, the real shocking thing from that revelation is the fact that WWE is actually willing to give Brook her own narrative. After being treated like the primary jobber of the Raw women's division for so long, WWE actually booked an angle for Dana to break away from Titus Worldwide.
And that angle involving Brook is the most noteworthy thing to come out of the Raw women's division this week, as Rousey vs Bliss was mandatory booking, The Bellas return was just as expected and the rest of the superstars in the Raw women's division stayed in the same lane, while Brook unexpectedly made the headlines.
#7 The Undertaker returns
The Undertaker and Shawn Micheals stood face to face for the first time in a long time on Raw this week, after Micheals was booked to talk about the last match between Undertaker and Triple H, Undertaker came down to the ring and took unexpected jabs at HBK which fans never saw coming. While The Undertaker and Micheals in the same ring were shocking, the fact that WWE actually hinted that these two men could face off one more time is truly an unexpected moment.
