Ring of Honor
Date: January 17, 2018
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana

We’ve got a stacked show this week, including something resembling a dream match (I use that term kind of loosely) between Jay Lethal and Will Ospreay. In this case dream means more like “it should be very good”, which is certainly not a bad thing to say about a match. Other than that there’s probably more from new World Champion Dalton Castle so let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Jay Lethal vs. Will Ospreay

Ospreay’s IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title isn’t here yet so non-title. They fight over a wristlock to start and it’s Jay being flipped over off a wristlock. Jay pops back up and shows Ospreay how to do a wristlock but the cartwheel into a basement dropkick is cut off. Lethal gets sent outside but is ready for Ospreay’s handspring dive, grabbing his hands to take Will down.

The three straight suicide dives send Ospreay over the barricade and it’s Marty Scurll coming out as we take a break. Back with Marty on commentary, explaining that he won at Final Battle because he brought out the old Lethal. Marty also demands a World Title match and that works very well for me. Ospreay knocks Lethal into the corner and lights up his chest with a chop.

A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker gets Lethal out of trouble and he scores with an uppercut. Ian: “To the European himself.” Marty found that one HILARIOUS and….eh I love easy jokes but not really. Back up and Ospreay kicks Lethal in the chest, followed by an enziguri in the corner. Will sends him outside and the Flying Space Tiger Drop (cartwheel into a moonsault over the top) crushes Jay as we take a second break.

Back again with the Oscutter being caught in a torture rack (Marty: “THE LETHAL EXPRESS!”). Jay rolls it forward like a reverse Regal Roll (Ian: “HE’LL BE YOUR HERO!”) for two and Marty is losing it on these near falls. Ospreay is right back with a reverse Impaler for two of his own, only to walk into the Lethal Combination. Jay’s Figure Four is countered into a small package but Jay counters the Oscutter into a cutter of his own. The Lethal Injection puts Ospreay away at 16:37.

Rating: B. Yep it was a very good match and again, that’s all you need on something like this. They were trading the big bombs here but they also played up the idea that they knew each other very well, which makes for a nice story. The Oscutter into the cutter was a very cool counter and Marty wanting to face Jay again could set him up for the title shot in New Orleans.

It’s time for Coleman’s Pulpit with guest Jonathan Gresham, who is in a much higher chair. Because he’s not that tall you see. Coleman starts in with the short jokes but Gresham talks about being trained by Mr. Hughes in Atlanta. We hear about Gresham’s not great win/loss record and Coleman laughs a bit. Gresham talks about mastering his style and the rules he would like for people like him. Sounds like a return of the Pure Rules format. And that’s it, ending another, ahem, thrilling, Coleman’s Pulpit. This is one of the lamest interview segments in wrestling history and it’s not getting any better. Just drop it already.

Kenny King vs. Brian Milonas

Milonas is the big fat guy who was pretty terrible in the Top Prospect Tournament. Brian throws him into the air but King lands on his feet out of a hiptoss. A kick to the head doesn’t do much to Brian but Kenny low bridges him to the floor with some more success. The corkscrew dive barely connects but let’s stop for a picture with a fan. Back in and King chops away to little avail as the big splash in the corner cuts him off. A twisting sunset flip out of the corner doesn’t work but King avoids the sitdown splash. King kicks him in the head and finally drops the big man. The springboard Blockbuster ends Milonas at 3:54.

Rating: C-. There’s only so much you can do in something like this and Milonas isn’t exactly much besides a tree to be knocked down. King needs to be built back up, especially for what seems to be a rematch for the title in King’s hometown of Las Vegas for the Anniversary Show. Not a terrible match and about as good as it could have been.

Post match King wants to fight Silas Young and gets his wish, only to get jumped from behind by Milonas. Beer City Bruiser gets back in for the beatdown, meaning Milonas is Bruiser’s partner as they go after the Tag Team Titles. I’ve….well I’m sure of a worse sounding team somewhere, though Bruiser has been growing on me.

So Cal Uncensored is in the ring for a chat. Before they can get very far though, ROH COO Joe Koff comes out to say the fans don’t want to see him. They want to see the best wrestlers, but that’s not what So Cal Uncensored is. They’re the most disruptive though and Koff should just fire them right now. Daniels threatens to go to TNA or WWE and tell his new bosses all of Koff’s plans for expansion. Koff isn’t worried because Daniels’ contract expires in a year. Therefore, at Final Battle 2018, the Addiction is done. ENOUGH WITH THE CORPORATE STUFF! It’s annoying in WWE and it’s even worse elsewhere. Cut it out already.

The Briscoes want their titles back.

The Kingdom vs. Dalton Castle/The Boys

O’Ryan and Castle start things off with the champ taking TK down without much effort. Back up and a ducked clothesline allows Dalton to hit the peacock pose, only to get jumped by the now legal Marseglia. Boy #2 (according to Ian, after a debate) tags himself in and it’s #1 springboarding in with a crossbody for two. Taven comes back in and demands to face Castle as we hear about him wanting the title. Egads please don’t do that as I can’t handle the promos.

Castle wrestles him down again but can’t get a German suplex. Taven scores with a running enziguri though, only to be sent outside. Castle loads up a dive but stops for that long striding strut of his. #2 dives in with a stomp onto Marseglia’s arm as we take a break. Back with #1 being sent into the barricade twice in a row to really put him down.

A good looking double flapjack sets up a backsplash/legdrop combo for two as the beating continues. Taven tells O’Ryan to let the Boy go and a missed charge allows #1 to get over to Castle for the hot tag. Dalton gets to clean house until he tries a Tombstone on Taven, leading to seven or eight reversals, capped off by Castle planting Matt. The Bang A Rang drops Taven again and the Julie Newmar (close to a crossface chickenwing) makes Marseglia tap at 11:53.

Rating: C. The match was fine, though my complete lack of interest in all things Kingdom isn’t changing anytime soon. It doesn’t help that O’Ryan and Taven look alike, but it’s just Taven and two goons, which doesn’t help the fact that Taven isn’t very interesting on his own. Castle continues to look like a star though and I’d actually be really interested to see him vs. Scurll down the line. The star power is there and I’m glad they took a chance on him at Final Battle.

Overall Rating: B-. Pretty good show here with only the worthless Coleman’s Pulpit holding things down. It’s too early to start worrying about the next pay per view but for now, things are looking fairly solid around here. Castle is an energetic champion, the Briscoes are looking more awesome by the week and King vs. Young could be a nice feud. I’m liking things around here right now and that’s not something I can say around here very often.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

https://wrestlingrumors.net/1-moment-monday-night-raw-history/

Again?

So WWE has put together the top 100 moments in Raw history with the top 25 being voted on by the fans.  This Monday a countdown video was released and the top five were:

5. The First Stunner to Vince

4. Chris Jericho Debuts

3. Occupy Raw

2. Pipe Bomb

1. Austin and the Beer Truck

I’m kind of stunned that the Pipe Bomb was allowed to be mentioned but it had to be on there.  The beer truck….ok I guess, but it never struck me as being head and shoulders above everything.  Actually it was the beer truck that was also voted the #1 moment at the ten year anniversary.

I’d have gone with Foley winning the title for the first time.  It’s emotional, memorable, entertaining and FREAKING LOUD.  That one sticks with a lot of people and almost every big name in the company is right there for it.

I saved this one for last for…well no apparent reason actually.

While there are all kinds of great matches and promos, sometimes it’s something very simple that work better than anything else. The moments are the things that you remember more than anything else and some of these are bigger than others. Some of them are important moments and some of them are just fun, but they all belong on here.

Before we get to the regular nominees, we need to get a quick honorable mention. The night after Wrestlemania, Vince McMahon was about to announce the new General Manager of Raw. He mentioned the new GM being bald…..and here comes Teddy Long to accept the offer. Teddy started making a tag match but Vince said it wasn’t him. Teddy said “my bad” and danced off into the back. I laughed very hard and while it wasn’t important, it entertained me when I was sick and I’ll always take that.

Sticking with the night after Wrestlemania, there was the opening of Raw. Just….WOW. The opening sequence felt like it went on for an hour with the THANK YOU TAKER chants but once Reigns came out, the fans absolutely went off on him because he had taken their hero. This was pure anger from the crowd and that’s exactly what it was supposed to be. The follow up needed to be better but what an opening to the biggest Raw of the year.

What was the follow up? That would be Braun Strowman turning over an ambulance with Reigns inside. I’m not even sure what to say about that. Of course the visual was faked but at the same…..HE TURNED AN AMBULANCE OVER! What else can you really ask here? It was one of the coolest visuals WWE has put together in a long time and made Strowman feel like a star.

It’s been too long since we’ve gone down to NXT so we’ll have to look at Aleister Black saying Velveteen Dream’s name. I called this a promo but when the whole thing is four words long, I’m not sure you can really call it a promo. The idea of giving Dream everything that he wanted in the worst circumstances was poetic justice and an amazing moment at the same time.

We’ll stick around in NXT with Tommaso Ciampa turning on Johnny Gargano to split up DIY. They took the perfect amount of time to make this work and the Chicago fans were STUNNED. This is going to set up one of the biggest matches NXT has had in years and when Ciampa comes back, likely to screw Gargano over somehow, the reaction is going to be amazing. The split couldn’t have been better though and the beatdown worked very well also. Throw in the awesome shock and it’s very high on the list.

In a moment that I was lucky enough to be there for, we have the Hardys returning to WWE at Wrestlemania. I was in the stadium for that and heard New Day say that there was going to be another team. During the pause, I got to my feet and said out loud “they wouldn’t”. And then they did with the Hardys returning only a night after having a huge ladder match in Ring of Honor. This felt big and was the big moment that Wrestlemania needed. Well one of them at least.

The final two are about as different as you can be and we’ll start with the comedy option. Back on February 13, Chris Jericho was trying to show Kevin Owens that they were still great friends. This led to Jericho, in a shiny outfit that only he could pull off, presenting Owens various presents (including a painting involving the two of them and Jericho without pants) but the big finale made the whole thing. Owens gave Jericho a new list but it had Jericho’s name on it. Jericho pulls the list out of the box…..and it was the List of KO. The beatdown was on and the Wrestlemania match was made.

They got me. I’m not exactly easy to surprise in wrestling but I was actually shocked when that List of KO appeared. It was the perfect way to split up the team and Owens looked like the biggest heel in the world. At the same time though, Jericho looked like he was trying to be a good guy but Owens just turned on him. That’s how to make Jericho a face, and it worked to perfection. Amazing segment here and it’s going to take something special to top it.

And then the Undertaker retired (I’m going with that until I see otherwise). He took his gear off and stood in the middle of the ring in front of the Orlando crowd and then put it back on for one final time. When I looked at him, I saw Mark Callaway in Undertaker’s clothes, which was the first time that had ever been seen. Undertaker walked up the aisle and then descended through the stage to say goodbye. This one doesn’t need much more of an explanation and if it stands, will be one of the best moments in wrestling history.

Who says you have to be a wrestler to be in wrestling?

While this might as well be called the Paul Heyman Award, there are certainly several candidates for it this time around. It might be an announcer or an interviewer but there are a variety of options this time around. I’m not sure if anyone is going to get past Heyman this year, but when you show up every now and then, it’s easier to look great.

Actually yeah, this year someone can pass Heyman for the exact reason mentioned: he’s not around very often and that brings him down a lot. Sometimes you need to do more than talk about how awesome Brock Lesnar is and while Heyman can do that better than anyone else, I’d like to see him around a little more often to declare him the best in this role.

We’ll go with someone who is more of a jack of all trades now with Corey Graves. Is there anything this guy can’t do? He hosts shows, he does commentary on both major shows and he rips on Byron Saxton like no one else can do. Graves is fun to listen to and has some rather good heel roles in there, which few others know how to do anymore. He’s very talented and I’d love to see him do this for a very long time to come.

There’s also perennial nominee Dario Cueto, who brings a completely new dimension to this by being an actual actor. He’s capable of being incredible menacing while also calculating, but that evil smile is just perfect for looking like the biggest villain in the world. I’m really hoping he’s back for the next season as the show really wouldn’t work without him.

If Corey is a jack of all trades, Renee Young is a jill of them. She’s the perfect combination of smart, funny, edgy, flirty and interesting that you can imagine her pulling off anything you ask her to do. She does the occasional storyline but for the most part, she’s the most polished interviewer WWE has had in a very long time. There’s a certain charm to her that you can’t make up and it works like a….well a charm actually.

Above all though, there’s Zelina Vega. To have showed up from pretty much nowhere and become the best manager in NXT is quite the accomplishment. Vega and Andrade Cien Almas are one of the best pairings around as Vega is the perfect compliment to her. She’s stunning, manipulative, evil, conniving and can be physical when she needs to be. It’s made Almas interesting, which seemed to be one of the most impossible tasks in all of NXT. Vega pulled it off though and that’s enough to win this hands down.

It all kind of depends on this no?

Sure there are good matches and good promos, but which of them come together to make the best overall presentation? Some of them are of course better than others and some don’t need to exist (which they don’t) but when they work well, they can be some of the best shows you’ll see in a long time.

We’ll start things off at the beginning of the year with Wrestle Kingdom XI. The Wrestlemania of New Japan almost never fails to impress The main event was one of the best matches of the year and while I liked Kushida’s match better (which tends to be the case more often than not), this was an excellent show from top to bottom. A bit long for my taste, but the biggest show of the year should be longer.

Speaking of the New Japan Wrestlemania, I’ll throw in the WWE’s Wrestlemania as well. The show didn’t quite live up to the standards of some of its predecessors but that’s not to say it wasn’t very good. The Hardys return was a great surprise and the ending made it feel historic, definitely giving this some great moments top to bottom. If this had that one blow away match, it would probably win the whole thing.

We’ll wrap up the main roster potion here with Royal Rumble, which did have that blow away match as John Cena defeated AJ Styles to win his sixteenth World Title. The Rumble itself might not have been the classic it needed to be, but the drama near the end was very good and there wasn’t a really bad match on the show. It’s one of my favorite shows of the year and this one didn’t disappoint whatsoever.

But yeah, this is all about Takeover and that’s really not a surprise. We’ll start with Takeover: Chicago, which had the Match of the Year in Tyler Bate vs. Pete Dunne II but also a heck of a ladder match for the Tag Team Titles, followed by the awesome split of DIY. The triple threat for the Women’s Title was very good and the NXT Title match worked as well, because as is the rule in NXT: you really don’t have a single bad match.

Overall though, Takeover: WarGames is the Show of the Year and it’s not even close. Where do you begin with this one? The NXT Title match was a great surprise, WarGames actually delivered in spades and there’s the amazing (and still underrated by me) Velveteen Dream vs. Aleister Black match. The Women’s Title was won by someone new and the opening hoss fight were good as well. This one delivered as only NXT can and it beat everything else in the year.

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 18, 2018
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Jeremy Borash, Josh Matthews

Opening sequence.

X-Division Title: Dezmond Xavier vs. Taiji Ishimori

OVE promises to take over everything tonight.

Video on American Top Team taking out James Storm and Moose trying for revenge. This show is starting to feel like a pay per view pre-show instead of a regular episode.

Flashback of the week: Aron Rex wins the first Grand Championship.

Video on Ethan Carter III vs. Matt Sydal for the Grand Championship.

Kongo Kong vs. Chandler Park

Kong gives Chandler a top rope splash and Joseph throws up the injury X. This is what the world was waiting for: more Kongo Kong.

Johnny Impact wants to take the World Title back to Los Angeles. Drake is from LA too, so does he want Eli to retain?

Alberto El Patron is in Detroit for the sole purpose of taking the Impact Wrestling World Title.

Eli Drake is ready to defend the title anywhere, including Detroit.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Eli Drake vs. Alberto El Patron vs. Johnny Impact

Rosemary vs. KC Spinelli

Post match Rosemary says she wants to face Laurel but has to wait for our favorite bunny Allie to get her chance. Rosemary wants the next shot but gets jumped by Hania, who has wrestled for Ring of Honor before. Hania lays her out with a reverse DDT on the steps.

Genesis preview.

LAX vs. OVE

The wire is still wrapped around Jake but Santana cuts him free so he can be Death Valley Driven through a barbed wire board for two. Dave spears Santana through a table to the floor, leaving Homicide to be tombstoned onto a chair wrapped in barbed wire for two. Sami loads up two tables in the ring but stops to piledrive Dave instead. A ladder is brought in but Konnan hits Callihan with a barbed wire bat. Ortiz stabs Dave with some wooden spikes and superplexes him through the two tables for the pin at 16:57.

Results

Taiji Ishimori b. Dezmond Xavier – 450 splash

Kongo Kong b. Chandler Park – Sitout Tombstone

Johnny Impact vs. Alberto El Patron vs. Eli Drake went to a no contest

Rosemary b. KC Spinelli – Red Wedding

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Royal Rumble 2007
Date: January 28, 2007
Attendance: 13,500
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Tazz, Michael Cole, Joey Styles, John Bradshaw Layfield

MNM vs. Hardy Boyz

Jonathan Coachman (Raw Executive Assistant) and Teddy Long (Smackdown General Manager) are holding the Rumble drawing (SWEET). After the standard bickering over who will win, Edge comes in to pick his number but first we look at Kelly Kelly (my goodness the WWE women were stunning back then).

ECW Title: Test vs. Bobby Lashley

Lashley beats Test up again. Why in the world was this not a clean pin? Lashley pinned him in an even shorter match on the following episode of ECW TV, so what was the point here?

We recap the Smackdown World Title match with Mr. Kennedy winning a Beat the Clock Challenge to earn the shot at Batista. Kennedy cheated Undertaker out of the shot so Undertaker went after him, only to hit Batista by mistake. That would be saved for Wrestlemania XXIII though, with Kennedy getting the shot and bragging about beating six World Champions leading up to lucky #7 tonight.

Smackdown World Title: Mr. Kennedy vs. Batista

JBL is FURIOUS over the non-count off the neckbreaker.

Kevin Thorn and Ariel try to draw a number when Hornswoggle (nearly feral at this point) comes in to do the same. Coach makes a short joke and gets bitten and attacked. Great Khali comes in for the visual joke, followed by grabbing three balls. He leaves two, which Kelly Kelly picks up. You know the joke and you know what Ron Simmons comes in to say.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Umaga

Wrestlemania ad.

Sandman goes to pick his number but sprays beer everywhere instead. Ric Flair comes in and Kelly hits on him. The lights go out and the rest of Extreme Expose (Brooke Adams and Layla) come in to dance. Again: back in the day when there were jobs for sexy women whose job was nothing more than to be sexy and dance in tiny outfits. There is something to be said about the old days.

We look back at various famous Rumble moments and winners in a nice touch as this is the 20^th Rumble. That being said, how many times can we have THE MOST STAR STUDDED ROYAL RUMBLE IN HISTORY???

Royal Rumble

Rob Van Dam is in at #18 and starts firing off the kicks. Kane gets rid of Booker, who gets back in and dumps Kane like a royal jerk. The fight continues at ringside as Viscera, complete with smoking jacket, is in at #19. Rob hammers on Finlay as the announcers make a bunch of fat jokes about Viscera. Johnny Nitro is in at #20, giving us Finlay, Edge, Benjamin, Punk, Orton, Benoit, Van Dam, Viscera and Nitro. It also gives us another section of NOTHING HAPPENING until Benoit throws Shelton over the top but since that might be interesting, Benjamin gets back in.

Ratings Comparison

Hardy Boyz vs. MNM

Original: B-

2013 Redo: B

2018 Redo: B

Bobby Lashley vs. Test

Original: D-

2013 Redo: D

2018 Redo: F

Mr. Kennedy vs. Batista

Original: B-

2013 Redo: D+

2018 Redo: D+

John Cena vs. Umaga

Original: C

2013 Redo: B+

2018 Redo: B+

Royal Rumble

Original: B

2013 Redo: C+

2018 Redo: C-

Overall Rating

Original: B

2013 Redo: C+

2018 Redo: C+

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/01/26/royal-rumble-count-up-2007-the-best-spot-finally-wins/

And the 2013 Redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/01/21/royal-rumble-count-up-2013-redo-2007-the-battle-of-texas/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Royal Rumble 2006
Date: January 29, 2006
Location: American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida
Attendance: 16,178
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, Joey Styles, Tazz

The opening video is about Mark Henry vs. Kurt Angle. The Rumble and Edge vs. Cena gets a little time as well.

Cruiserweight Title: Gregory Helms vs. Kid Kash vs. Funaki vs. Jamie Noble vs. Nunzio vs. Paul London

Nunzio hits a slingshot to send Noble into the corner and Funaki adds a bulldog for two. We finally get to the dives with Nunzio diving on a pair of guys, allowing Noble to get two on Kash via a leg lariat. Noble dives on Helms and Nunzio on the floor and Funaki is knocked off the top onto Nunzio and Noble. London kicks Kash to the floor as well and dives on everyone not named Helms with a shooting star off the top.

Trish is looking GREAT in a referee outfit when Mickie, currently the psycho lesbian, comes up and says she loves Trish. Ok then.

Mickie James vs. Ashley Massaro

Big Show draws his number. Rey comes in to talk about Eddie a bit. Apparently Eddie is joking with Rey by giving him this number.

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Boogeyman

Before the Rumble starts, the Spirit Squad comes out to give us a chant.

Royal Rumble

HHH is #1 and Mysterio is #2, naturally coming out in a lowrider and an Eddie shirt. HHH tries to power him down to start but Rey comes back with kicks to the knee. Rey hits a headscissors to take HHH down and into the corner but HHH lifts him to the apron. Rey comes back with a springboard dropkick to the back but HHH ducks the 619. Simon Dean is #3 and goes after Rey to a bunch of boos. Dean sends him to the apron and wants a high five from HHH but gets punched in the face and hit by a seated senton. The elimination is academic.

Lashley immediately comes back with an overhead belly to belly and a third press slam to HHH. Kane takes a Dominator and Sylvan, the “Smackdown fashion consultant” is #10 and lasts about 18 seconds before Lashley throws him out. Unfortunately he turns around and gets caught in a double chokeslam followed by the elimination. The partners quickly turn on each other with Kane getting a boot up to stop a charging Show. They fight to the ropes and HHH runs up to throw them both out, emulating the same thing Shawn did in 1996 with Vader and Yokozuna.

Benoit chops on HHH until Joey Mercury is #14. Mercury fires off dropkicks but gets caught in Rolling Germans. Carlito jumps Benoit to break it up and Mercury pounds on Benoit a bit. Freaking Tatanka is #15, giving us a group of Mysterio, HHH, Carlito, Benoit, Mercury and Tatanka. Seriously why did the bring TATANKA back? He fires off chops as the fans do the Seminole chant.

Shawn has to skin the cat to stay in and turns into a kick to the head from Shelton. Michaels is cool with that and sends Shelton to the apron followed by a superkick to eliminate him. This brings out Vince who hates Shawn and the distraction lets Shane run in and dump HBK. Shawn is ticked and runs back in and superkicks HHH after escaping a Pedigree attempt. He goes after Vince but a single referee stops him. Ok then.

Mickie comes in to hit on Trish as she does an interview on WWE.com.

We recap Edge vs. Cena. Edge won MITB back at Mania and waited nine months before cashing in on Cena after Cena survived the Elimination Chamber. Tonight is the rematch three weeks later.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Edge

Edge tries for a countout but Cena DIVES back in at nine. Back in and Cena pounds away but charges into a spinwheel kick for two from the Canadian. Edge punches Cena to the floor again but goes after him instead of going for the countout again. Cena gets sent into the steps and back inside a missile dropkick gets two for the champion. Edge loads up a superplex but gets shoved off, only to avoid a guillotine legdrop from Cena.

Edge freaks out on Todd Grisham in the back. Edge storms off and Lita panics a bit. We get a random Hacksaw Jim Duggan cameo (does anyone do those better?) to call her a HO!

Smackdown World Title: Kurt Angle vs. Mark Henry

Instead Angle hits a German (kind of) to put both guys down. The Angle Slam gets two (duh) and the ankle lock is broken up again. The counter causes the referee to get bumped so Angle gets a chair. A low blow and two chair shots take Henry down for two, so Angle takes a buckle off. Kurt drop toeholds him into the buckle and rolls Henry up to retain. Our hero everyone.

Taker comes out in a freaking horse drawn chariot and motions that he wants the title. Then he shoots lightning from his hands at the stuff over the ring, before slamming his arms down to send lightning at the posts. The ring collapses to end the show. Yeah that happened.

Ratings Comparison

Gregory Helms vs. Kid Kash vs. Funaki vs. Jamie Noble vs. Nunzio vs. Paul London

Original: B-

Redo: C+

Mickie James vs. Ashley Massaro

Original: C-

Redo: D

Boogeyman vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

Original: F-

Redo: N/A

Royal Rumble

Original: D

Redo: C-

John Cena vs. Edge

Original: B

Redo: D+

Kurt Angle vs. Mark Henry

Original: D-

Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original: C-

Redo: D

What was I on for that Edge vs. Cena match?

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/01/25/royal-rumble-count-up-2006-eddie-guerrero-puts-on-a-mask-and-wins-the-rumble/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Royal Rumble 2005
Date: January 30, 2005
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Attendance: 12,000
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, Jim Ross, Tazz

The opening video is designed like a clock counting down in the Rumble. Cool idea there.

Edge vs. Shawn Michaels

The Canadian is sent back to the floor but he catches Shawn in an Edge-O-Matic to take over again. A baseball slide keeps Shawn down and we head back inside. The fans are firmly behind Shawn here, which means the heel turn is working for Edge. Shawn tries a standing rana but gets caught in a powerbomb for two instead. Off to a rear naked choke from Edge which stays on for a good while.

Anyway Shawn pounds away in the corner and grabs a rollup for two, prompting Edge to try to walk out. The imbecile of a referee holds Shawn back, allowing Edge to sneak up from behind and spear Shawn to the floor. Shawn finally crawls back in and Edge dances a bit. Edge tunes up the band and spears Shawn down for two more, sending Edge into a fit. He pulls his own hair out and does those awesome facials that only Edge can do.

With nothing else to try, Edge puts Shawn on top for a superplex, only to get knocked down for the flying elbow from Shawn. Sweet Chin Music is countered into an electric chair drop for two more and Edge is very frustrated. Edge rolls through a sunset flip into the Edgeucator (imagine a Sharpshooter but with Edge behind Shawn like an ankle lock) but Shawn makes the rope. After a small package gets two for Shawn, Edge reverses a rollup into one of his own and grabs the ropes for the cheap pin.

Heidenreich is panicking about caskets when Snitsky comes up. Heavy breathing ensues and Snitsky says he has an idea.

The casket is brought out.

Undertaker vs. Heidenreich

Smackdown World Title: Kurt Angle vs. Big Show vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

Rating: C+. This is one of those matches I was expecting to suck but it wound up being pretty solid. Angle is going to be good no matter what he does and Show had some solid motivation out there for a change. JBL escaping with the title was a recurring theme for nearly a year until he ran into a buzzsaw called John Cena in a few months. Shockingly good match here.

Batista goes to draw his number and hears Bischoff bar Evolution from ringside for the next match. Big Dave seems very happy to tell HHH.

Long video recapping HHH vs. Orton. They hate each other, Orton was never supposed to get another shot, so tonight he gets another shot.

Raw World Title: HHH vs. Randy Orton

The Game goes after the taped up knee and wraps it around the post because he can. HHH modifies the cannonball down onto the leg by dropping an elbow instead of sitting on it. After a quick attempt at a small package by Orton, HHH puts on a LONG Figure Four, lasting way longer than almost any other I can remember. Orton finally turns it over, sending HHH retreating to the floor.

Orton counters a Pedigree attempt into a catapult but HHH counters the RKO for at least the third time before hitting the high knee for two. Randy is bleeding from the lip. The Pedigree is escaped again and Orton gets two off a clothesline. The champ rolls to the floor again and gets sent into the steps for trying to hide. Back in and Orton pounds away in the corner, only to miss a DDT attempt and possibly give himself a concussion.

Teddy tells JBL and company that Jibbles has to defend the title against Big Show in a barbed wire steel cage match at No Way Out.

Royal Rumble

Benoit and Eddie fire off chops in the corner followed by a double suplex because they can. Eddie hits Three Amigos and Hardcore Holly is #4. Holly asks if he can have some fun with Puder and rips some skin off with chops in the corner. Benoit and Eddie get in some chops of their own before Holly kicks Puder low, hits the Alabama Slam, and throws him out. Hurricane is #5 as Guerrero and Benoit dump Holly.

Hurricane gets double teamed but Eddie tries a double cross, only to get chopped for his efforts. Hurricane hits a Blockbuster on Eddie but Benoit chops him down and whips him into Eddie for the elimination. Kenzo Suzuki (one of the most forgettable footnotes in wrestling history) is #6. Just like everyone else, Benoit and Eddie pound on him in the corner with chops and suplexes, but Benoit turns on Eddie ala earlier but only throws him to the apron.

Shawn is #19 and superkicks Simon out, doing some Hindu Squats to celebrate. Edge tries to corner Mysterio in a corner. JR: “Makes a lot of sense.” Shawn backdrops Charlie out and Kurt Angle is #20. He hits Angle Slams on everything in sight but tries the ankle lock on Shawn. Michaels rolls through and superkicks Angle out after less than 40 seconds. Coach is #21 and you can hear JR groan. He gets in a single shot on Benoit and runs to hide.

Ratings Comparison

Edge vs. Shawn Michaels

Original: B

Redo: B-

The Undertaker vs. Heidenreich

Original: D-

Redo: D

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Big Show vs. Kurt Angle

Original: B

Redo: C+

HHH vs. Randy Orton

Original: D+

Redo: D+

Royal Rumble

Original: B-

Redo: A-

Overall Rating

Original: B-

Redo: B

Like I said, I liked the Rumble a lot more this time around.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/01/24/royal-rumble-count-up-2005-the-rise-of-the-new-generation/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

https://wrestlingrumors.net/kbs-review-somebodys-gonna-get-paige-turned/

They’re very different but they both seem to have left on the same day.