WWE WrestleMania 36 set the future for Monday Night Raw. A few key results had a chance to change WWE completely going into the April 6 edition of the show.

Drew McIntyre won the WWE Championship, toppling Brock Lesnar. His victory over The Beast Incarnate was dominant, establishing him as the new pinnacle of the red brand.

Edge went through a physical beating at the hands of Randy Orton, but he did not stay down. He put an end to The Viper's onslaught. Now, he has a chance to rewrite his story.

Kevin Owens used his home-field advantage to take down Seth Rollins. With The Messiah's reign of terror halted for a moment, no one knew what either man would do next.

Becky Lynch caught Shayna Baszler mid-Kirifuda Clutch with a roll-up for a three-count, retaining her Raw Women's Championship. The Queen of Spades was shocked and frustrated, while The Man has now basically run through the entire women's division.

The Raw after WrestleMania is always explosive, and this had the potential to be a massive show from start to finish.

Asuka vs. Liv Morgan

Liv Morgan came after Asuka from the opening bell. However, The Empress of Tomorrow was on top of her game. She wore down Morgan until she could lock in the Asuka Lock, forcing a tapout.

Result

Asuka def. Morgan by submission.

Grade

C-

Analysis

This was an interesting match to use to open the Raw after WrestleMania, but at least viewers immediately got wrestling from the start for once.

Morgan looked good enough pushing Asuka, but the ultimate goal seemed to be filling time. It didn't come off as a star-making moment. It was just a chance to see that Morgan can push talent.

The Street Profits and Bianca Belair vs. Angel Garza, Austin Theory, Zelina Vega

Angel Garza and Austin Theory showed off their cocky attitude from the opening bell until Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins kicked them in the teeth. Zelina Vega got involved one too many times, and the referee disqualified the heels.

Bianca Belair headed to the ring again and helped clear it. The EST challenged Vega to a match, as she was now officially a member of the Raw roster. A brawl broke out during the match that forced the referee to call for a no-contest.

The Street Profits called for a six-man tag team match where Belair finally got her win with the K.O.D. on Vega.

Result

Street Profits def. Garza and Theory by disqualification. Belair vs. Vega goes to a no-contest. Street Profits and Belair def. Garza, Theory and Vega by pinfall.

Grade

D

Analysis

This could have been accomplished in a more interesting way in half the time. The events at 'Mania set up the six-man tag match, yet multiple matches were put in the way of the obvious result.

Belair will be great for Raw. She is a star and only getting better. She could have great matches with Becky Lynch tomorrow, or WWE can build her up until she is ready to hit that new peak.

Aleister Black vs. Apollo Crews

With long-dormant draft picks, Monday Night Raw picked up Apollo Crews from Friday Night SmackDown. Crews immediately pushed Aleister Black to places no one else had pushed him. He wore him down and then picked up the pace when he felt the urgency.

Despite his best efforts, Crews could not put away The Dutch Destroyer, who sealed the win with Black Mass.

Result

Black def. Crews by pinfall.

Grade

D+

Analysis

It was nice to give Crews a fresh start on Raw and have a competitive match off the bat, but this was overlong and boring. Five minutes of headlocks and armbars transitioned into a single spot followed by short rests repeatedly.

Black has been the master of focused sprints throughout his WWE career. He is a striker, not a technician. This match eventually picked up down the stretch, but it was so slow for so long without a story truly ever building.

This was the telltale sign that WWE was understaffed for the night and unsure how to fill the time.

Ricochet and Cedric Alexander vs. Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch

Ricochet and Cedric Alexander showed their growing cohesion as a tag team against the experienced duo of Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. The One and Only hit the Recoil on Lorcan as Alexander took out Burch to seal the victory.

Result

Ricochet and Alexander def. Lorcan and Burch by pinfall.

Grade

C+

Analysis

This was a simple, fun tag team match that showcased the talent of Ricochet and Alexander as a duo. While it would have been nice to give Lorcan and Burch more to work with, especially after the last match already went too long, the contest used its time well.

The importance here was further establishing Ricochet and Alexander as a tag team. The match succeeded on that front even if both should still be working the upper midcard as solo acts.

Seth Rollins vs. Denzel Dejournette

After replaying the match between Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins, KO made clear he was not done fighting, as Raw was his show. The Messiah dominated NXT's Denzel Dejournette and hit the Stomp for the win.

Result

Rollins def. Dejournette by pinfall.

Grade

C-

Analysis

This squash match made sense for the moment. Rollins was frustrated. He took out all that anger on his NXT competitor. Especially with a short-staffed show, this was a smart way to keep The Messiah on TV.

Hopefully, this just means that Rollins is taking a new path while KO is moving on as well. The two need to get away from each other and start over with fresh rivals.

Nia Jax vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Nia Jax returned to action with a dominant display. After hitting the Samoan Drop, she added a new move to her arsenal with a package DDT to take the win.

Result

Jax def. Deonna Purrazzo by pinfall.

Grade

D

Analysis

This was simple and effective, but it would have been more poignant to actually do something with Jax's return. After all this time away, WWE had a chance to re-establish her. Instead, it was just an unnecessary squash.

Jax has history with Becky Lynch, and The Man needs a new competitor after taking down Shayna Baszler. This would have been a perfect time for Jax and Lynch to go face-to-face again.

Humberto Carrillo vs. Brendan Vink

The power of Brendan Vink overwhelmed Humberto Carrillo early, but the Mexican Superstar did not give up. He fought back and hit a pair of moonsaults to take the win.

Result

Carrillo def. Vink by pinfall.

Grade

D+

Analysis

How many squash matches can you cram into a show in a row? After first going too long with the first few matches, the rest of the night was loaded with matches that had no relevance to WrestleMania.

It's good to know Carrillo is around and healthy, but it would have been better if he was actually somehow connected to everything going on with Zelina Vega and Angel Garza. That feud ended abruptly, and now he is just waiting.

Drew McIntyre vs. Big Show

In a pretaped segment from 20 minutes after WrestleMania, Drew McIntyre thanked Paul Heyman for giving Brock Lesnar the wrong advice in their match and fueling The Scottish Psychopath to win.

Big Show interrupted to challenge McIntyre to fight him for the championship. Show slapped the champion until he had to fight. The veteran went after an injured champion. The WWE champion survived a chokeslam and hit the Claymore to win and retain his title.

Result

McIntyre def. Show by pinfall to retain the WWE Championship.

Grade

C+

Analysis

This was a weird main event moment. While McIntyre winning puts him over even more as champion, this made no sense. It might promote Show's Netflix sitcom, but it did not land.

It never felt like the World's Largest Athlete was a legitimate challenger, and he never should have been. This was the most bizarre way to end the night after WrestleMania. At least The Scottish Psychopath was put over through it all.