5 things fans didn't like on this week's Monday Night Raw

Monday night Raw had its highs and lows this week.

Everyone has an opinion about what constitutes a good episode of Monday Night Raw and while some fans might think the December 11, 2017, episode of Monday Night Raw was incredible, others might beg to differ. Of course, a lot of the problems with the episode had to do with The WWE not advancing storylines, but there were other problems that plagued the show as well.

That being said, Raw did manage to have a few good moments. For the most part, though this episode of Raw highlighted all of WWE's weaknesses. They were poor at advancing storylines, and they severely underutilized talent consequently leaving fans with a general feeling of emptiness.

Here are five mistakes WWE made this week on Monday Night Raw, and how those mistakes could damage storylines moving forward. As always, make sure to leave a comment below letting us know what you thought of the list.

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#1 Not Using Finn Balor Properly

Finn Balor, seen here in his Demon gimmick, has been used poorly on Monday Night Raw thus far.

Finn Balor has been in storyline limbo over the course of the past month or so and that trend continued when he took on Curtis Axel in a throwaway match on Raw this week. The Demon King did end up with the victory when all was said and done, but the lack of storyline progression, relatively low stakes and limited time made this basically a bathroom break.

It's like WWE doesn't know what to do with Balor at this point in time and just booked him on the show at the last minute so fans could see him do his entrance. The match did have all of Balor's hallmark moves, including a slingblade, a fast-paced comeback, and a Coup De Gras to finish of Axel, but it didn't really matter due to continued lack of storyline progression.

#2 Nia Jax Being Used Improperly

Nia Jax making her way to the ring.

Nia Jax not being used much on Raw

Speaking of underutilized talent, WWE continued to make Nia Jax an afterthought on this week's edition of Monday Night Raw. Sure, Enzo Amore accidentally mentioned Jax during a backstage talk about the number one contender's match for The Cruiserweight title, but only having her present for a brief conversation backstage was beyond sad

Jax shouldn't even be in this storyline to begin with and to not having her do something significant with her time on television really hurt what WWE could have done here. Yes, it is salvageable and WWE is probably just teasing things for now until The Royal Rumble draws closer, it still is just annoying to see someone so underused that deserves much better.

In fact, this storyline is probably horrible for both Amore and Jax. Enzo and Jax deserve so much more time then what they are currently receiving and they also deserve a better storyline to help them shine. Unfortunately for Jax, she is seemingly taking the worst of it in this storyline, especially after being build up as a dominant force in the Women's Division for so long.

#3 Absolution versus The Raw Women's Roster

Absolution standing tall in the ring.

It's understandable WWE would want to even the odds between Absolution and the rest of the women's locker room, but to do it in the way they did was beyond ridiculous. For example, why would WWE have Asuka back down from a fight for two straight weeks and then need help from the rest of the locker room to dispatch Absolution?

Again, WWE needed to do something special here and emptying the locker room was probably the logical next step, but to make Asuka look weak in the process was just horrible storytelling. The only saving grace of the segment was that it seemed to set up a future bout between Paige and Asuka

In the meantime, the segment did plant the seeds for a lot of mini-feuds between Absolution, Bayley, Mickie James, Sasha Banks and many others, which could be a great way to mix things up in the women's division right now. It would also tip WWE's hand on who they are actually behind and who is just there to eat pins at the end of the day as well.

#4 Weird Tag Team Division Booking

Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose winning The Tag Team TitlesNo Tag team title rematch.

WWE just seems to be spinning their collective wheels when it comes to the Tag Team Division. Of course, a lot of that probably has to do with the fact that The Royal Rumble pay-per-view is a month away and WWE can't continue to give away title matches on free television, but it was really a poor way to build off of last week's controversy.

Why WWE couldn't do a six man tag team match with Samoa Joe, Sheamus and Cesaro versus The Shield is beyond me. In fact, they could have even made a stipulation that Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins would get a rematch for Raw Tag Team Titles if they won, but they instead decided on three separate matchups across a three-hour show.

Again, there's probably a purpose to all this, but it gets lost in the shuffle when you consider the alternatives WWE could have done with this one. The Shield thrives in six man tag situations and to not have that be the main event for Raw is a travesty all on its own. In the end though, hopefully, WWE is building to something awesome here.

#5 Continuing To Use Kane

Bruan Strowman versus Kane on Monday Night Raw

In what had to be the biggest and most blatant use of the words "spinning your wheels," WWE decided to take their number one contender match for The Universal Title and give it an unresolved finish. What makes the situation even worse, however, is how much this may have hurt the momentum WWE has been working so hard to build for Braun Strowman.

That being said, the match did have its amazing moments and the spear through the barricade and the powerslam through a table definitely got the fans excited. But it still halted the momentum of what should be one of WWE's biggest stars. Furthermore, it forced fans to wait at least another week to get the answer of who will face Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title at The Royal Rumble

In the end, WWE had all the pieces to make something great out of this match and while they have consistently delivered with big moments during Strowman matches in the past, it looks like WWE choose to play it safe here and slowly build up to The Royal Rumble. Unfortunately for WWE, doing this could cause big problems for Strowman and Kane moving forward.