Welcome to Bleacher Report's coverage and recap of WWE Raw on October 17.
Following weeks of torment and stalking, Dexter Lumis finally stepped into the ring for a match against the man he has been targeting, The Miz.
Seth Rollins only just won the United States title from Bobby Lashley last week, but he already proved to be a fighting champion by putting the belt on the line against his nemesis, Matt Riddle.
We also saw Brock Lesnar make an appearance, Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson battled Alpha Academy, and Elias made his highly anticipated return.
Let's take a look at what happened during Monday's show.
Raw opened abruptly with Bobby Lashley in mid-sentence as he called out Brock Lesnar. He clearly did not want to wait for the show to start, and The Beast Incarnate did not make him wait long for a response.
They clashed at ringside and Lesnar immediately began to take control of The All Mighty. The former United States champion ran him into the ring post and speared him through the barricade.
Several officials and wrestlers tried to clear Lashley from the ringside area, but he made his way back around the ring to spear The Beast over the announce table before putting him right through it with a big slam.
This was exactly what these two needed to do to get this feud going in the right direction. Lashley being the one to come out on top was the right call. There's honestly nothing that needs to be changed about this.
We returned after a break to see AJ Styles accompany Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows to the ring for their match against Chad Gable and Otis.
Gable and Anderson had a nice little sequence to kick things off with some fast-paced action before their bigger partners had a chance to lock horns.
While the Academy got in some good offense, this match was all about making The O.C. look good in their first match back with WWE. Gable and Otis have always been awesome at putting others over, and they lived up to that reputation here.
The O.C. hit The Magic Killer for a clean win. As they celebrated with Styles, The Judgment Day came out to confront them. The two groups had a verbal exchange that led to The Phenomenal One challenging Dominik Mysterio to get in the ring for a match.
Winners: Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
WWE has been good about not overdoing it with the chaotic/abrupt show openings since Triple H took over. It happens just enough to make you think it might happen at any time, but not enough that you always expect it.
While Corey Graves talked up The O.C. as a successful duo outside of WWE, he did not mention any specifics like titles won or promotions.
It was nice to see Anderson get so much time in the ring. It feels like he did not get to show off much during his first WWE run even though he is a talented wrestler.
Finn Bálor taking credit for starting the little club they were in was a nice way to tell that story without directly referencing The Bullet Club.
Rhea Ripley is so good as the devil on Dom's shoulder telling him what to do.
Rollins came to the ring to give a promo bragging about winning the U.S. title. He was incredibly over with the crowd and controlled everything like a pro.
Mustafa Ali came out to remind him that he was supposed to have a shot at the title against Lashley, and he asked Rollins to honor that. The Visionary told him to get to the back of the line because he had Riddle to focus on Monday night.
Rollins ended up giving Ali several compliments before beating him down and leaving him injured at ringside.
It was a solid segment, but Rollins' solo portion was the best part. It just didn't accomplish much other than reminding us Ali wants a title shot, which has been obvious for weeks.
The next bout saw Dakota Kai and Iyo Sky take on Bianca Belair and Candice LeRae in a tag team match. Bayley sat at the commentary table to watch the action.
Sky and LeRae began for their teams and had a nice exchange before Belair tagged in and began to assert her dominance. She even picked up her partner and used her as a weapon to knock her opponents down.
This was a relatively standard WWE tag bout. Both sides looked good at various points and had some decent double-team spots. It also had a couple of minor sloppy moments, but nothing that took you out of the match. They were small things but easily noticeable if you pay attention.
They had a lot of time to work, which allowed them to make this fun without rushing from spot to spot. Kai and Sky scored the win because Belair was too busy dealing with Bayley at ringside.
Winners: Sky and Kai
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
The look on Rollins' face when Ali took his sunglasses off and threw them down was hilarious.
Even when he is not there, Michael Cole cannot escape being mocked by Bayley. It's one of the funniest running gags in all of pro wrestling.
Belair using LeRae as a weapon was kind of a fun spot, but it also looked a little awkward. She pulled it off when it came to the power needed, but the way she hit Sky and Kai looked a little weak.
LeRae looked good in this match. She did not need much time to shake off any ring rust if she even had any at all.
The way Sky hit the mat when Belair and LeRae hit a dropkick/suplex spot looked nasty. She seemed fine since she did not leave the ring, but that could have ended badly.
JBL came out to give Baron Corbin a special reintroduction to the WWE audience. He ditched the Happy name and wore a new vest, but he still seemed to have most of the same presentation.
Corbin took control right away and threw Ziggler out of the ring while JBL sat with the commentators to put over his new protege.
The Showoff began to show some signs of life and used his veteran experience to turn the tide in his favor, but Corbin's power was a bit too much for him to overcome.
We have seen better from both of these men on multiple occasions. This match wasn't bad, but it was in no way memorable or effective at repackaging Corbin as a more dangerous version of himself. It picked up in the back half, but it still didn't do what it should have for the returning Corbin.
After what was probably a little more time than this match needed, The No-Longer-Lone Wolf scored the win with End of Days.
Winner: Baron Corbin
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
JBL said Ziggler wouldn't have made it during the Attitude Era. It's impossible to judge something like that, but Ziggler might have actually done even better back then.
Corbin's new gear is fine, but it might just be a little too simple. Nothing about it stands out.
The reverse suplex Corbin hit was perfect, but some of that credit also goes to Ziggler for having such good balance and body control.
The Judgment Day accompanied Dominik Mysterio to the ring for his match against Styles. Ripley whispered some kind of instructions into his ear as he entered the squared circle.
The Phenomenal One wanted to teach the younger Mysterio a lesson, so he was big-timing him a lot in the beginning to make an example out of him.
While the youngest guy in The Judgment Day was able to get in some offense here and there, this was mostly controlled by Styles. Ripley was the one who was responsible for any time Dominik was able to get an advantage.
Thanks for some help from her again, Dominik was able to roll Styles up and get the pin in what could be the biggest upset we have seen since The Phenomenal One lost to that guy with no chin that we don't talk about anymore.
From an action perspective, this match was fine. From a storytelling perspective, it was pretty good because it was both surprising and advanced the story.
Winner: Dominik Mysterio
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
It's easy to forget Styles is not that tall until you see someone like Dominik stand over him by a few inches.
In terms of how he sold for his opponents, this was one of Dom's best matches. He took every move Styles hit and bumped well.
Ripley laughing at Styles after Dom took him out at ringside was so over the top that it was funny.
The Miz was trying to fake a knee injury throughout the show to get out of facing Lumis, but Johnny Gargano exposed his ruse and he was forced to fight his recent stalker.
The A-Lister attacked him in the aisle with a steel chair and hit the Skull-Crushing Finale on the chair to take him out completely.
Grade: Incomplete
Elias made his return to perform for the first time in many months, but he was interrupted by Riddle, who was actually just trying to play a duet with him.
This went on a little longer than it needed to and ended up being cut short by Rollins' entrance for the main event, so Elias never got to sing.
Riddle stalled any momentum Elias had when this began.
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
The way Lumis hit the chair when The Miz dropped him looked and sounded good.
Elias had a decent beard again, but it was nowhere near as long as it used to be. That might take a while.
Elias was still hanging out at ringside as Rollins and Riddle squared off for the United States Championship. The Original Bro immediately tried to lock in a triangle submission, but The Visionary used the ropes to force a break.
Rollins shoved Elias at one point, so the bearded brawler nailed him with a knee to the face when the ref had his back turned.
When we returned from the break, Elias had much less impact on what was going on than he did during the first half. Riddle was on a roll, so he didn't really need any help.
In fact, Elias led to his downfall when he got into the ring and Rollins shoved The Bro right into him before hitting his finisher to pin Riddle and retain the title. He finished off Elias with a Stomp, but Ali prevented him from hitting one more on Riddle.
This was a solid main event, but we have seen The Bro and The Visionary fight plenty in recent weeks. It's time for both men to move on.
Winner: Seth Rollins
Grade: B+
Notable Moments and Observations
Graves implying anyone needs a license to be a manager in WWE was pretty funny.
The jumping knee Elias hit on Rollins looked great. It's one of his better moves.
The reverse superplex Rollins hits was outstanding.
