IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: November 28, 2018
Location: NEC Arena, Birmingham, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time for a title match as Jordan Devlin has challenged Pete Dunne for the NXT UK Title and gets his shot here. It’s not like there is anyone else to get the shot at the moment so they might as well go with Devlin. Other than that we’re likely going to get some build towards the first ever Women’s Title match, which should be taking place next week. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

The announcers hype up the upcoming title matches.

Xia Brookside/Millie McKenzie vs. Charlie Morgan/Killer Kelly

Xia grabs a top wristlock on the very tall Morgan to start things off. A headstand lets Morgan reverse into a regular wristlock so Brookside grabs a hurricanrana to get out of trouble. The rather popular Millie comes in for a swinging neckbreaker and it’s time to start in on the armbar. That goes nowhere so it’s off to Kelly, who gets armbarred as well, this time with the shoulder at a really painful looking angle.

Kelly finally sends her into the corner for the break and, with her arm apparently not wrecked, hammers away on the mat. Millie pops up for a hard release German suplex (Fans: “SUPLEX MILLIE!”) and it’s back to Xia to pick up the pace. That’s cut off with a toss into the post but Millie is right back with a spear to Morgan, giving Xia the jackknife rollup pin at 5:14.

Rating: C. Millie definitely has star power and Xia’s look alone will keep her in a good place for a long time. Being the daughter of a big time WWE trainer won’t hurt either. I still haven’t gotten much out of Kelly, but I’ve heard good things about her stuff from outside NXT UK. That’s not exactly unheard of so maybe she’s better than I’ve given her credit for.

Ashton Smith vs. Eddie Dennis

Smith, who isn’t the taller one for a change, spins out of a wristlock to start but bounces off a shoulder block attempt. A dropkick staggers Dennis and a leg lariat puts him on the floor. The suicide dive just isn’t working though as Dennis drives him back first into the apron instead. Back in and Dennis gets into his cocky mode before hitting a judo throw for two.

The cravate goes on for a bit, until Smith fights up with a quick backbreaker. A springboard dropkick puts Dennis on the floor for a big flip dive (no hands of course) and a top rope leg lariat gets two. Dennis gets some boots up in the corner and goes up, only to get staggered with a dropkick. The superplex is countered into the Severn Bridge though and the reverse implant DDT gives Dennis the pin at 6:02.

Rating: C. Smith’s offense looks good as he’s a big guy with some great athleticism. That’s the kind of style that makes him a valuable commodity, but there’s something so interesting about Dennis. It’s kind of a mysterious aura and that’s much more important than the athleticism. Anyone can show off in the ring, but being someone who gets your attention is what matters.

We recap Saxon Huxley and Joseph Conners splitting last week.

Joseph Conners vs. Saxon Huxley

They go right at each other to start with Huxley uppercutting him into the corner. Some right hands have Conners in trouble until some knees to the ribs cut Huxley off. A hard clothesline lets Conners hammer away on the mat as the fans call him Judas. Things slow down a bit as we hit the chinlock. Since Conners doesn’t like the JUDAS SUCKS chants, he puts Huxley on the top for some forearms to the back. Huxley makes the comeback with a running knee and a dropkick, only to miss a charge. A sitout Rock Bottom spinebuster gives Conners two, followed by Don’t Look Down for the pin at 5:15.

Rating: D+. The brawling was fun but neither of these guys do anything for me. They’re just generic brawlers who don’t stand out in any way. I mean, other than Huxley’s look of course. Neither has any kind of a character to be seen and the story was started last week and blown off a week later. That doesn’t do them any favors and it’s a problem on a lot of the roster.

Video on Toni Storm, who wants to make history. She doesn’t just want to win because she needs to win. Ripley isn’t getting the title because it’s Toni time.

Video on Rhea Ripley, who tried being nice last year in the Mae Young Classic but would rather be ruthless and get what she wants. She’s not worried about Toni Storm because Toni isn’t Rhea Ripley.

United Kingdom Title: Pete Dunne vs. Jordan Devlin

Devlin is challenging and gets taken down by the wrist. That’s reversed into a headscissors but it turns into a slap off with Dunne getting the better of things. Devlin takes him down by the wrist to little avail as Dunne monkey flips his way to freedom. One heck of a forearm drops Dunne but he pops back up with a heck of a clothesline. It’s time to bend Devlin’s fingers back before Dunne just stomps on Devlin’s head. You can’t say he doesn’t vary up his offense.

Devlin avoids a charge though and kicks at the back before going with some more slaps to the face. A standing moonsault hits Dunne’s legs for two but he’s up with a glare and a hard forearm. This time it’s Devlin getting dropped so Dunne hits a running forearm in the corner. The snap German suplex sets up the X Plex into a cross armbreaker but Devlin rolls onto him for two and a break. Dunne tries a charge but runs into a backdrop driver for a closer two than you might expect.

A standing moonsault misses though and Dunne unloads with stomps on the fingers. The Spanish Fly plants Dunne but he’s right back with a Koji Clutch. With that broken up, Dunne tries a stomp to the hand on the steps but gets shoved off, sending him face first into the steps. Devlin isn’t done and hits a Spanish Fly off the steps. That’s enough for a dueling MAMA MIA/HOLY S*** chant, with the fans not quite in sync.

Both guys have to dive back in to break the count, with Devlin grabbing a reverse hurricanrana for two more. The fans accurately declare this awesome but switch to oooo as Dunne punches him in the face to block a standing Lionsault. Dunne back’s is killing him though and he can’t follow up, allowing Devlin to roll to the apron.

Devlin sends him back first into the post and a super Spanish Fly (dude learn a new move) gets two more. That’s good for a standing ovation and Devlin follows up by removing Dunne’s mouthpiece and hitting a superkick. Devlin’s moonsault is countered into a triangle choke and Dunne breaks the fingers to make Devlin tap at 15:10.

Rating: A-. Devlin had been growing on me for a bit and this was the big match that he had been needing. These guys beat the heck out of each other with Dunne’s back injury slowing him down just enough to keep Devlin in there. Dunne, the hometown boy, was being outwrestled by the talented Devlin but took over when Devlin tried to go a little too high. The brawling worked well for Dunne too, including the whole breaking fingers thing. Great match here, as tends to be the case with Dunne.

Overall Rating: B+. That main event alone is enough to make the show work as the top stars around here carry things as far as they need to go. They’re got a star on their hands whenever someone takes the title from Dunne, which almost has to be coming sooner rather than later. The rest of the show was entertaining as well with all but the Conners vs. Huxley match exceeding expectations. Just get some better character development and everything will be great.

Results

Xia Brookside/Millie McKenzie b. Charlie Morgan/Killer Kelly – Spear to Morgan

Eddie Dennis b. Ashton Smith – Reverse implant DDT

Joseph Conners b. Saxon Huxley – Don’t Look Down

Pete Dunne b. Jordan Devlin – Dunne snapped Devlin’s fingers

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Mixed Match Challenge
Date: November 27, 2018
Location: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Michael Cole, Renee Young

It’s time for the playoffs, meaning we’re down to four teams left on either side. Tonight we’ll get down to the final two Raw teams and given the options we have, I’m not sure what to expect here. Well other than some bad wrestling and unfunny comedy because this show isn’t something anyone is taken seriously. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Raw Division Quarterfinals: Ember Moon/Curt Hawkins vs. Alicia Fox/Jinder Mahal

The women start things off with an exchange of rollups until Moon headscissors her into the corner. Mahal comes in and Moon wants to face him, knowing how worthless Hawkins really is. I mean, she’s not wrong. Mahal punches him down and slaps on a headlock takeover but Hawkins scores with a dropkick. A clothesline puts Mahal on the floor but Hawkins stops to go after the Singh Brothers, allowing Mahal to get in a shot to take over.

Back in and we hit the chinlock on Hawkins, because that’s all Mahal knows how to do. Actually I sit corrected as Mahal switches off to a cravate to show some range. And never mind as it’s right back to the chinlock, just to keep things comfortable. Hawkins fights up and sends Mahal outside for the hot tag off to Moon so the pace can pick up.

Rating: D. Well of course we’re getting more Mahal. The guy can’t even win a match on Main Event but he’s one of the final four options for the #30 spot in the Royal Rumble. Oh and make sure to push the heck out of Mahal and Fox, because it’s so wacky to have them advance this far after being a disaster in the regular season. This felt like a way to laugh at the fans and pull the rug out from them, which seems like the goal more often than not.

Asuka and Miz are ready for Naomi and Jimmy Uso next week.

Naomi and Jimmy Uso are ready for Asuka and Miz next week.

Fox and Mahal promise to win next week. Mickie James comes in and says Fox should watch this.

Raw Division Quarterfinals: Bobby Lashley/Mickie James vs. Bayley/Finn Balor

The men start things off but Lashley tags out less than a second in. That means a lot of stalling until a Lio Rush distraction lets Mickie get in a cheap shot to take over. The way too early chinlock goes on, followed by a neckbreaker for two on Bayley. We hit the bodyscissors as they don’t exactly seem interested in going full speed ahead here. Bayley gets up and it’s a double clothesline to set up the double tag.

That’s a bit of overkill as only one is needed but I guess that’s making up for the weaker effort. Balor tries to pick up the pace but gets knocked off the apron and into the announcers’ table. Since that’s only good for two, Lashley sends him outside again and mocks Braun Strowman’s run around the ring, allowing Balor to hit the Sling Blade. Mickie is right there to pull Bayley off the ropes though and there’s no tag.

Back up and Lashley misses a charge into the post, allowing the hot tag off to Bayley. A flapjack cuts her off in almost no time though and the top rope Thesz press gets two. Bayley fights out of the MickieDT but Rush breaks up her dive. Balor throws Rush outside and hits the flip dive onto both guys, leaving Bayley to grab the Bayley to Belly for the pin on James at 9:20.

Rating: C+. That’s one of the better matches of the entire season so far for the simple reason that it felt like they were trying. Instead of having a dance off or doing something stupid, you had two teams fight each other because they wanted to advance on in the competition. That hasn’t been the case for most of the season and it was very, very nice for a change.

R-Truth and Carmella are ready for Jeff Hardy and Charlotte next week.

Jeff Hardy and Charlotte are ready for R-Truth and Carmella next week.

Balor and Bayley try the Dirty Dancing lift to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. The second match was much better than the first and that’s enough to make this a better show than we’ve had in a few weeks. If nothing else it’s great to have the ending in sight, because we’ve sat through this whole thing for so long that there’s no charm left to it. Hopefully the finals are good, because what we’ve gotten so far hasn’t exactly been worth seeing.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #32
Date: November 23, 2018
Location: Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

It’s a big night in Chicago as we have Shane Strickland getting his rematch for the World Title against Low Ki. Strickland hasn’t been around much lately and seems to be far more distant than he used to be. That doesn’t bode well for his future, but stranger things have happened before. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We look at Sami Callihan jumping Tom Lawlor a few weeks back. Egads enough of that clip. Thankfully it leads into last week’s rather good street fight. This set up Simon Gotch turning on Lawlor in a pretty well done angle.

Salina de la Renta kicks a briefcase over to Gotch as a thank you for last week. Gotch is pleased with the money inside and offers his services for any future jobs. Salina doesn’t trust him, but offers to double the pay if Gotch takes out Lawlor in Miami. That sounds nice, but Gotch would rather she trust him. He’ll take Lawlor out for no money instead. Salina gives him a bit of an “ok whatever” look and leaves.

Opening sequence.

In Miami, Gotch vs. Lawlor with no ropes and no holds barred.

Trey Miguel vs. Kotto Brazil

Miguel gets kicked out to the floor but catches Kotto with a right hand. Friedman: “What a nerd!” Back in and Brazil gets crotched and it’s time to stomp away. Friedman actually sees something in Miguel but doesn’t think much of Brazil, who has as many brain cells as teeth. Bocchini comes to his defense and Friedman shoots him down in a hurry. As Miguel takes him down with a chinlock, Rich suggests that Friedman is afraid of Brazil and Friedman bursts out laughing.

Brazil’s comeback is cut off by a knee to the face as Friedman wants to hear some of Tony’s golden tongue. Miguel sends him into the rope but gets caught with a sloppy looking reverse hurricanrana (not a move you can risk botching that much) and Brazil starts striking away. Brazil sends him into the barricade with a pair of suicide dives and a big flip dive takes Miguel down again. Friedman: “Get out of the way Trey you idiot!”

Back in and Miguel hits a spinning right hand (Friedman: “Is it another flip? SHOCKING!”) to the jaw for two. Miguel ties him up in the ropes with Brazil’s head tucked underneath the buckle for a 619. Miguel’s bottom rope springboard cutter (which looked like he nearly fell down) has Friedman freaking out but a middle rope version is shrugged off. A standing Sliced Bread #2 finishes Miguel at 10:02.

Rating: C+. The match was your usual entertaining flip based match but Friedman absolutely stole the show here. I haven’t been big on his in-ring work but this was hilarious as he pointed out the inherent flaws in most of these matches while talking about how much better he was than Brazil, setting up a match between the two down the line. Good enough match, hilarious everything else.

Shane Strickland had no comment as he arrived earlier.

Rush is still coming.

Confirmed for the first Miami show: the Lucha Bros defend against the Hart Foundation, Lawlor vs. Gotch with wins only coming by knockout or submission, PCO vs. LA Park in a falls count anywhere match, Rush vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Andrew Everett making his MLW debut.

Confirmed for the second Miami show: Lawlor vs. LA Park and Low Ki vs. Konnan for the World Title (I’m still wondering what they’re going to do there) and Friedman vs. Jason Cade, Kotto Brazil and a mystery opponent for the Middleweight Title in a ladder match.

Brazil is ready to change the title picture but Friedman jumps him from behind.

The Hart Foundation say Tommy Dreamer is no Dusty Rhodes but he’s a little better than Kevin Sullivan. Dreamer is nowhere near Brian Pillman, or any of the other Hart Family members for that matter. Pillman says Dreamer is just trying to be Dusty and he’s been trying to make that dream last for way too long. The cane has already gone upside an old man’s head so Dreamer’s dreams are getting eaten. Pillman is actually a heck of a heel promo, which can serve him well.

Gringo Loco vs. Marko Stunt

Stunt really does look like he’s about 12 years old and it’s not working. Loco drops to his knees to make things a little more fair and Bocchini says Stunt reminds him of a Wrestling Buddy. With that not going anywhere, Stunt snaps off some headscissors and hurricanranas, which do look rather crisp. Stunt kicks him to the floor for a suicide dive and a top rope hurricanrana drops Loco again.

Back in and Stunt gets crotched on top, allowing Loco to hit a standing moonsault. We look at the crowd for a bit, making me think there might have been a botch in there. Something close to a Whisper in the Wind drops Loco and a very fast hurricanrana gives Stunt two. Loco tosses him into the air but Stunt spins around into a Codebreaker for the pin at 3:58.

Rating: C. I’ll give Stunt this: he’s WAY more exciting to watch than Cheeseburger and that puts him ahead. Stunt at least does some cool looking moves instead of running palm strikes, which at least gives you a reason to watch him. At least he finally won something too, as you can only have him lose so many times before it looks stupid.

MLW World Title: Shane Strickland vs. Low Ki

Low Ki is defending and has Salina and Ricky Martinez with him. Feeling out process to start with Ki taking him down to the mat and winning an early grapple off. Shane finally slips out for a standoff but gets caught in an armbar over the ropes to keep Ki pretty firmly ahead. Back in and Shane tries to pull him down into more grappling and is promptly caught in something like an STF. Shane escapes and scores with a discus lariat as things head outside.

The champ gets sent into the barricade and it’s time to head back inside for a quickly broken seated abdominal stretch. An atomic drop into a backbreaker gives Shane two but his suplex is countered into a drop onto the top rope, giving us the always cool shot of a cameraman being knocked down. Ki sends him into various things and drives an elbow into the head back inside. The reverse chinlock goes on for a bit until Shane comes up with some shots to the face.

That’s fine with Ki, who headstands in the corner and drops back into a kick to the chest for two more. Now it’s Shane caught in a seated abdominal stretch before Ki switches to a standing version. Shane fights out and we see Hathaway watching from the crowd. The champ gets sent hard into the corner and a belly to back suplex gets two. A reverse sitout gordbuster (cool) gives Shane the same and he loads Ki up on top. Ki shoves him away and clotheslines the referee by mistake.

Another shot to the face sends Ki into the barricade and Shane drops him face first onto the barricade. The Swerve Stomp connects back inside but there’s no ref. A new one slides in for the very delayed two so Martinez gets on the apron for a distraction. With no referee, Ki pulls Shane’s HAIR out of his head and rolls him up for the pin to retain at 16:22.

Rating: C+. It was good enough but this never felt like a must see match and Shane wasn’t exactly hitting the close near falls. You really can see Shane falling from stardom before your eyes and that’s not the best thing in the world. He could have been the franchise player around here but there’s only so much you can do when WWE comes calling. This was a lot of hard strikes and grappling so it was entertaining, but it didn’t feel urgent and that’s a problem.

Post match Ki and company head to the back, leaving Shane to rant about the hypocrisy around here. He puts his body on the f****** line around here every night and this is how the company treats him. With Hathaway looking on from the crowd, Shane tells everyone to shut up because they’re the big problem with everything. Shane talking to Court Bauer and Bauer alone: Court is the problem around here and Shane is terminating his contract. The mic is cut and security tries to get Shane out of the ring. He finally storms off through the crowd to end the show. Good angle to end Shane’s time here with some great emotion.

Overall Rating: C+. The angle at the end was a big deal as you can feel MLW moving away from its roots and growing up a bit. You can only go with the original stars for so long and Shane was the first big name they had. That had to be done at some point and it’s what they got done here. Other than that, you had a pretty average show, but the Miami cards have my interest and I’m curious to see where some of these things go. Not a great show, but they have me watching more each week so they’re doing something right.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: November 27, 2018
Location: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

It’s a night of returns this week as both AJ Styles and Becky Lynch are scheduled to appear, at least according to the preview. Of course the preview was rather wrong last week so you never know what you might get. My guess is three new authority figures, two long chinlocks and a rematch in a wrestling ring. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Here’s Paige to get things going and she wastes no time in welcoming Becky Lynch back. That’s good for a huge pop and Becky says when you’re the hottest thing going, any time away is too much. She was ready for Survivor Series but Charlotte had to fight for her, so Charlotte needs to come out here right now. This brings out Charlotte, with Becky saying that she told Charlotte to give Ronda the beating that she would have and Charlotte came close. Of course, if Becky had been in there, Ronda wouldn’t have been standing the next day.

Charlotte must be confused though, because it took her channeling Becky to give Ronda that beating. Charlotte says not quite because she was just being herself. She’s the only woman on either roster capable of giving Ronda that kind of a beating. With her genetics and mindset, she can do whatever it takes to get the job done. Becky says Charlotte just went from copying her old man to copying the Man but at least she beat the phoniness out of Charlotte over the last few months. Charlotte: “Man, Nia must have hit you harder than I thought.”

Charlotte is ready to fight again right now but Paige says not so fast. They can fight, but they’ll do it at TLC in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match. This brings out the IIconics, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville and Zelina Vega. Any of them deserve a title shot, but Paige just won’t give them a chance.

This brings out Naomi, Asuka, Lana and Carmella to say any of them could be champ. Becky is willing to fight any of them right now but Paige says not so fast. If they all want to fight, we’ll have a battle royal tonight and the winner is added to the TLC match to make it a triple threat. Becky sounded great here and is just on another level right now.

Usos vs. The Bar

Non-title and there’s no Big Show due to an argument with the Bar earlier today where Cesaro took a right hand. The Usos start fast and go after Cesaro’s arm but Jimmy gets punched into the corner. Some stomping has Jimmy down as we take a break. Back with Jimmy still in trouble but Sheamus misses a charge, allowing the hot tag to Jey. Everything breaks down and Jey’s dive is cut off by an uppercut.

Sheamus adds a middle rope knee for two but gets sent shoulder first into the post. A superkick gets two on Sheamus but the Double Us is broken up with an uppercut to Jimmy and double knees to Jey. The spike White Noise is broken up and Jimmy rolls Cesaro up for two. A blind tag brings Jey back in and it’s a superkick into the Superfly Splash for the pin on Cesaro at 8:48.

Rating: B-. There were some great near falls in there, but my goodness find some fresh teams to fight. You have all kinds of people floating around WWE and so many of them have nothing to do. Make some new teams or throw in some of the older ones. Send the Usos over to Raw and bring….I don’t know, the B Team and Heath Slater/Rhyno over or something. Neither would be better than the Usos, but at least it’s something new.

New Day is laughing at a clip of Miz losing last week and Miz isn’t happy. Miz gets a match set up as a result, but Big E. lets it slip that he’s a big Marine fan. Pointing and wailing ensue.

Here’s AJ Styles for his first comments since losing the title. The 14 days since he lost the title have felt like a lot more than the 371 days he held it. He hates losing, but it was the way he lost. After a clip of the loss, AJ talks about the aftermath being what bothered him. We see a clip of Bryan’s speech about being a new man last week and AJ talks about how Bryan has been nowhere to be seen over the last week. Bryan better come out of his little chamber and show up at TLC. Make sure to bring the title though, because it belongs to AJ. Good fire from Styles here and the match should be great.

Video on Lars Sullivan.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev

Non-title. Nakamura jumps Rusev before the bell and hits Kinshasa. No match.

Joe talks about being ready to drink a toast to Jeff, but you shouldn’t have alcohol around him. That was a great video package, especially since Jeff was so out of it he probably doesn’t remember a lot of it. Joe doesn’t like the idea of Jeff being given another chance when Joe hasn’t had his first.

Jeff doesn’t mind being put up on a pedestal no matter what he’s done, but those demons are always in the back of his mind. The next time, and there will be a next time, that Jeff messes up, there is a Samoa Joe path to recovery and it’s one painful step. Jeff says he’s always ready to live for the moment so let’s have a moment right now. And of course Joe walks away. Those were some harsh words but Joe needs to win something and it’s not like Hardy is there for much more than putting people over at this point anyway.

The Usos and Naomi sell stuff.

Kofi Kingston vs. The Miz

Miz works on a wristlock as pancakes are thrown around at ringside. Kofi sends him outside though and a big dive takes us to a break. Back with Kofi hitting the Boom Drop but Trouble in Paradise is caught. The SOS is reversed into a failed Skull Crushing Finale attempt, followed by an SOS to give Kofi two. Miz’s DDT gets the same but Big E. offers a pancake distraction so Kofi can grab a rollup for two more. A knee to the ribs cuts Kofi down so Miz DROPKICKS WOODS to take out the trombone. Miz grabs a chair but walks into Trouble in Paradise for the pin at 6:48.

Rating: C-. Well that was random. Kofi beating Miz is fine and it helps a bit that Miz going after the rest of the team cost him the win. It’s certainly better than having the Lucha House Party fight with an advantage and then still pretending to be the heroes. This seems to be building to Shane vs. Miz and….dang that makes me cringe a bit.

Here’s Randy Orton, carrying Rey Mysterio’s mask, for a chat. He talks about how people haven’t been happy with what he did but to him, it felt euphoric. Orton never understood what was so important about a mask like this because he never bothered to learn the history. What he did last week was meant to embarrass and humiliate Rey and bring him off the pedestal that the fans have put him on. At this stage in his career, all Rey is is just another of Orton’s victims.

This brings out Rey, still in a neck brace. The fight is on in the aisle with Orton getting the better of it and taking the brace off. Rey fights back and scores with a quick 619 to set up a second 619. It’s time for a chair but Rey takes too long and gets caught in the hanging DDT. Orton isn’t done and wraps the chair around Rey’s neck to slam it into the steps. Doing it again makes Orton look like that much more of a villain and that’s interesting.

Miz comes in to see Shane McMahon and asks where he was. He can’t will this team into existence and calls the Best in the World trophy their baby. They need to get it together.

Battle Royal

Carmella, Asuka, Sonya Deville, Mandy Rose, Billie Kay, Peyton Royce, Naomi, Zelina Vega, Lana

The winner gets to join the TLC match at TLC and Charlotte and Becky are sitting at ringside. It’s a brawl to start of course and Vega is out less than a minute in. Lana is sent through the ropes (not eliminated) and Vega beats her up as we take a break. Back with the IIconics dumping Lana and Asuka sending the two of them to the apron. A hip attack eliminates both of them but Carmella kicks Asuka in the head.

Asuka kicks her out anyway but gets beaten down by Sonya and Mandy. A jumping knee to the face rocks Asuka but Naomi makes a save with some forearms. Mandy blocks a hurricanrana though and puts Naomi on the apron. Naomi pulls her out as well and backflips on the apron before sending Mandy into the post for the elimination.

Sonya knees Naomi out and it’s down to two, which the fans really like. Asuka starts throwing the kicks but gets taken down by a double leg. Mandy offers a distraction and gets kneed in the face, leaving both of them to be pulled over the top and out to the apron. Sonya makes the mistake of trying a charge though and gets kneed in the face to send Asuka to TLC at 10:19.

Rating: D+. This was quick and not terrible and I’ll certainly take what I can get with Asuka. She’s long overdue for a rebuild and just putting her in the title match is better than anything she’s done in a long time. I wouldn’t have her win the title or anything of course but it’s a little breath of air in the title picture and that’s almost always a good thing.

Overall Rating: C-. While not a great show, this blew away anything Raw did last night and that makes it easy to watch. The wrestling wasn’t the best thing in the world, though the segments were there to pick things up. Hopefully things continue to stay interesting and we get a strong build towards TLC. As long as Becky gets to keep talking like she did here, everything should be awesome.

Results

Usos b. The Bar – Superfly Splash to Cesaro

Kofi Kingston b. The Miz – Trouble in Paradise

Asuka won a battle royal last eliminating Sonya Deville

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

This one might be a bit interesting.

How would have HBK faired in today’s wrestling climate? It could have be in either WWE or in the indie scene. Would he have been huge or just been see as another face by the fans?

Now this is an interesting one, and not just because the wife is a huge Shawn fan and might kill me depending on how I answer.

Did anyone do that better than Shawn? He knew how to play to a crowd like no one else and could steal a show so perfectly. There’s one other major point in his favor though: at the end of the day, Shawn is one of the most talented in-ring performers in history, if not of all time. That kind of talent is going to rise to the top as people would see just how good he was. Shawn could steal the show against anyone and he would do it on any stage.

The same holds true for WWE, though maybe not to the same degree. The style that Shawn worked would get over, but at the same time it would be partially smothered by everything else going on. His time as a face wouldn’t work so well as faces tend to get destroyed anymore and his over the top heel antics wouldn’t be allowed anymore. The talent would get him wherever he needed to go and he would be a star, but I don’t think he would be able to get as far otherwise. He’d be a huge fan favorite, though not likely the kind who got pushed as a major star.

IMG Credit: WWE

Hidden Gems #1
Date: July 9, 1983
Location: Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte, North Carolina

This is a trio of house show matches from 1983 in previews for the upcoming Starrcade. I mean, it’s four months from Starrcade but it’s as good of a tie in as we’re going to get. All three of these matches were very good at Starrcade with one of them being an all time classic, so this could be interesting. Let’s get to it.

Note that there are no commentators so it’s just the action alone.

NWA World Tag Team Titles: Brisco Brothers vs. Jay Youngblood/Ricky Steamboat

The Briscos (Jack and Gerry) are defending after having won the titles from Steamboat and Youngblood the previous month. The fans aren’t exactly thrilled to see them, to put it mildly. Youngblood is a talented guy who wore a Native American headdress and looked a good bit like Steamboat. Unfortunately he wouldn’t make it to 1986, passing away due to pancreatitis at the age of 30.

The challengers don’t show up to start so Gerry offers them a chance to forfeit right now. Those are fighting words though so here they come. It’s a brawl to start with the champs cleaning house, even though I didn’t hear a bell. Some heroes these two are supposed to be. Youngblood gets a very delayed one on Gerry off an atomic drop and we settle down into a match. Steamboat comes in for a swinging neckbreaker and Gerry is already flailing around on the selling.

Jack gets knocked off the apron and the champs are reeling early. There’s a slam into a good looking slingshot splash from Youngblood but Gerry comes back with a belly to back suplex for the break. It’s off to Jack for a backbreaker as I’m already drooling over the idea of Jack vs. Steamboat. The chinlock goes on and Steamboat tries to come in, allowing Gerry to add some stomps in a classic heel baiting move.

With nothing else working, Youngblood ax handles Gerry in the head and the hot tag brings in Steamboat to a big reaction. House is cleaned and we settle down to Steamboat working on Gerry’s leg. That includes wrapping it around the post and a shinbreaker as Steamboat must have been watching his Ric Flair tapes. Or just working with him for the better part of ever. A falling chop to the knee (Huh?) keeps Gerry in trouble and it’s back to Youngblood for an Indian Deathlock.

Jack comes in for the save with a kick to the ribs but gets clotheslined right back down. That means the hot tag to Ricky and the top rope chop to the head gets two on Jack. Everything breaks down with Ricky having Jack pinned but Gerry comes off the top with an ax handle to the back to give Jack the pin to retain at 11:54.

Rating: B+. I really liked this one as they had a hot crowd and four talented guys in the ring. In other words, it was a classic NWA tag match and that’s almost always going to work. They had a great match at Starrcade as well so I can’t say I’m surprised here. These teams actually traded the titles twice before Starrcade so it was hardly a long term title chase.

Post match the champs brag a lot so Steamboat and Youngblood beat them up and leave. Kind of odd to see the heels left alone in the ring like that. Gerry calls them out for another fight but no one shows up.

NWA World Title: Harley Race vs. Ric Flair

From another show on the same day with Race defending, having taken the title from Flair less than a month earlier. Before the match, Flair says something that I can’t make out. Race starts fast with a suplex attempt but Flair slips out and hits a crossbody, sending Race begging off. Back up and Race takes him into the corner, only to be reversed for a poke to the eye. A hiptoss puts him down and Flair tells him to bring it.

Flair puts him down again with a headlock takeover and grinds away for a bit as the mic keeps picking up the fans talking in a weird bit. It’s like a fancam mixed with regular footage and that’s taking some time to get used to. Back up and Race leapfrogs him (!) but gets taken down by a flying forearm, which isn’t quite worthy of its own exclamation point. Instead Flair takes him straight back down with a front facelock and then turns it over into some small package attempts. It’s so strange to see Flair wrestling a low key technical style like this but it’s working.

Race fights up and they slug it out until a headbutt to the ribs slows Flair down. The champ takes over in the corner with stomping and knee drops, followed by a near gorilla press for a surprising power display. The falling headbutt connects as we keep cutting to a young girl in the crowd for some reason. Race gets two off….something that the girl didn’t like. Flair’s comeback is cut off by a trip to the floor but Race misses the falling headbutt on the concrete.

A chair off the head rocks Race again and Flair continues the head trauma with a posting. Since Race is old school though, his head is basically immune to damage and he comes right back, only to get slammed off the top (what an odd role reversal). Flair scores with a backdrop and slaps on a sleeper. That’s reversed, so Flair belly to back suplexes him for two instead. The fans are WAY into this as Flair hits a regular suplex for two more.

Right hands in the corner have Race rocked and Flair goes up top for the top rope elbow to the head, only to knock the referee down as well. Race throws Flair over the top and I think you know where this is going. Flair comes back in and gets two off a belly to back suplex. They fight to the floor for a nice false finish on what looked to be a double countout but Flair gets back in.

Race’s high crossbody is rolled through for two and Flair slaps on the Figure Four. In a smart idea, Race throws the referee to the floor for what should be the DQ but Flair begs him off and we keep going. Flair chops away but gets thrown over the top for the DQ at 17:31. The fans go nuts when Flair is announced as the winner, probably as they know a rematch is coming.

Rating: A-. Oh this was great as Race was looking desperate by the end and trying to get himself counted out or disqualified because he knew the younger Flair was the better man. That’s why he needed to cheat to win and it makes the entire bounty storyline make that much more sense. Great match here, as you had to know it was going to be given who was out there. I know it gets said a lot and it should be said even more: Race is incredible and one of the best to ever get in the ring. Watch his stuff and learn a lot.

Post match Flair comes in and hammers away until Race bails. We get an announcement for next Wednesday’s show to wrap it up. I love little touches like that.

Roddy Piper vs. Greg Valentine

Back in and Piper hammers away to send Valentine outside again, drawing quite the reaction from the crowd. More stalling ensues inside until Valentine takes him into the corner for some shots to the head. You don’t throw hands with Piper though, who erupts in the corner and even throws in a knee to the ribs for some flavor. Valentine bails again, this time going up the aisle for a breather.

Back in again and Piper hammers away all over again, this time hitting a jumping knee to drop Valentine. A gutbuster finally gets Greg out of trouble and it’s time for the forearms to the chest, ala Sheamus of all people. Piper snaps him throat first across the top rope, with Valentine doing a better than expected bump. A rake to the eyes gets him out of trouble again and it’s time for another slugout. Valentine knees him in the head (looked good too) and Piper falls out to the floor.

To get really violent, Valentine puts Piper’s head against the post (as Piper has a bad ear) and pulls on it, drawing some rare screams from Piper. Valentine stays on the bad ear but Piper starts bobbing and weaving, followed by something like a dropkick out of the corner. A running knee sends Valentine outside again and this time it’s Piper sending him into the post.

Some left hands put Valentine down again and Piper even goes aerial with a right hand from the bottom rope in a rare visual. They start ripping at each others’ faces and both seem to be bleeding (as they should here). Valentine heads outside again and this time Piper dives off the apron to take him down. Piper grabs the rope (ringside barricade) and chokes away back inside, drawing the DQ at 13:47.

Rating: B+. This was all about violence and two guys wanting to hit each other as much as they could. Valentine was scared to fight at first until he tried slugging with Piper, when he realized he was in over his head. This had a ton of crowd heat too and that was more than enough to carry this to a higher level. Very entertaining fight and the collar makes sense as Valentine ran off so many times.

Post match Piper keeps choking away with the rope until some of Valentine’s friends come in for the save. Piper fights them off too and Valentine is foaming from the mouth (great visual) as the villains run. That leaves a crazed Piper in the ring to wrap things up.

Overall Rating: A. Oh yeah I’ll be coming back to ALL of these as this was a blast. I mean, granted I picked and chose a few combinations here and I’ll have to keep doing that until I get caught up, which is going to take a long time. Either way, this was an awesome set of matches and I liked them better than their Starrcade rematches, which says a lot as that’s a classic show of its own. This is a great way to let us see some fresh wrestling that hasn’t been seen in a long time and that’s the beauty of the Network.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 26, 2018
Location: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

We’re coming up on TLC and the card is already starting to come into focus. Last week saw two big matches set up and you can imagine some more taking place tonight. We also don’t know any of the big gimmick matches yet, which are often some of the most important things on the show. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Lio Rush and Drew McIntyre in the ring. They talk about how great their Thanksgiving was, though they didn’t indulge themselves like these common people. They’re all thankful for everything they do, including what they did to Braun Strowman last week.

We see last week’s attack that put Strowman on the shelf and then go to Birmingham, Alabama where Strowman says he’ll be on the shelf for a while. His surgeon has never seen an injury like this before nor worked on an arm this size. He’ll be back though and what happened last week will look like a paper cut compared to what he’s doing to the three of them.

Elias vs. Bobby Lashley

Corbin, McIntyre and Rush are at ringside. Lashley’s new nickname seems to be the Almighty. I’m sure that’ll work just fine. Elias chops his way out of the corner to start but gets taken down into an early chinlock. Back up and Elias sends him outside, setting up a baseball slide, much to Lashley’s friends’ annoyance. Lashley comes back in and drops Elias with a right hand for a choke with the boot.

Elias fights back but gets pulled to the floor and has to deal with Corbin and McIntyre. It’s time for the guitar but Corbin jumps him from behind. Lashley stomps on the guitar and Corbin chairs Elias out to the floor. A double whip sends him into the barricade as the beatdown just keeps going. McIntyre gets in a great looking shot with a reverse Alabama Slam onto the steps, followed by Lashley hitting the spear. Lashley finally throws him back inside and a gator roll gets the pin at 14:11.

Rating: D. The angle part at the end made this feel way longer than it should have been and that doesn’t work well for a match. It’s a good sign for Elias that he’s getting this kind of treatment, though the latest heel trio isn’t the strongest thing in the world. The show still needs some top faces and having them beaten down like this isn’t helping things.

Post break Corbin fires a production worker for the spotlight on Elias. Alexa Bliss comes up to him and offers her services for anything Corbin might need. Since this is no longer the Attitude Era, Corbin puts her in charge of the women’s division. That would make her the third heel authority figure on this show.

Dean Ambrose was at his doctor’s office earlier today and said he won’t be at the show tonight in the toxic waste dump of Milwaukee. That’s why Rollins was fine with an open challenge for the title tonight because there was no chance Dean would be in the arena. As for tonight, Dean is getting his shots to avoid all the diseases that the fans carry. There is nothing that can wash away Rollins’ sins though and at TLC, Ambrose is putting him out of his misery for good.

Renee Young still won’t talk about what’s up with Dean.

Lucha House Party vs. Revival

In case last week wasn’t enough. Before the match, the Revival talks about the tag team etiquette that the House Party didn’t show last week with their lucha rules. And again, this is under Lucha House Rules, meaning it’s 3-2. Metalik dropkicks Wilder down to start and it’s off to Kalisto to climb onto Dorado’s shoulders for the splash. Dawson comes in for a torture rack kneeling backbreaker, followed by various drops for two. Not that it matters as the luchadors all come in and take over on Dawson, including the Salida Del Sol. The shooting star finishes Dawson off at 2:32 and I want to pummel whoever wrote this nonsense.

We look back at Nia Jax breaking Becky Lynch’s face.

Bayley and Sasha Banks sell stuff for Cyber Monday.

Video on Lars Sullivan.

Here are Nia Jax and Tamina for a chat. Nia says she has a lot to be thankful for this year, mainly being breaking Becky Lynch’s face. That brings her to Ronda Rousey, so we see Jax beating Rousey up at Money in the Bank. Then it was Charlotte beating her up at Survivor Series, leaving Ronda to talk about how hard a champion has to fight. Nia is now on top of the mountain but here’s Rousey to interrupt.

Rousey yells at her about how Nia is from a warrior culture who likes to hit people in the face. She could fight the champ right now, but Jax just got done washing Becky’s crusted blood off her hand. The double teaming seems imminent but Natalya runs in….and gets jumped by the Riott Squad. Rousey makes the save.

We recap the Drake Maverick issue from Survivor Series and ensuing jokes.

Maverick is ready to see the AOP crush Bobby Roode and Chad Gable.

Tag Team Titles: AOP vs. Chad Gable/Bobby Roode

Gable and Roode are challenging. Maverick goes after Roode’s robe and the distraction is enough for Akam to get in a few shots in the corner. Gable comes in with a missile dropkick and the armbreaker over the ropes to keep Rezar in trouble. Maverick now has the robe on and stands on the stage for the GLORIOUS pose as we take a break.

Rating: F. Nope.

Alexa comes in to see Banks and Bayley and thinks they need to get to know each other. Banks isn’t happy but Bliss offers them the chance to go to the ring for an open forum from the fans. The two of them aren’t pleased but seem to agree.

Finn Balor is ready to face Baron Corbin tonight.

Ember Moon vs. Alicia Fox

Mixed Match Challenge playoffs preview, with Ember’s new partner….Curt Hawkins. He and Jinder Mahal, with the Singh Brothers, are here as well. Fox kicks her in the face for a very early two and a neckbreaker gets the same. The chinlock doesn’t last long and Moon hits the spinning suplex out of the corner. The Eclipse finishes Fox at 1:53.

Post match Hawkins celebrates like he won in a funny bit. No Way Jose comes out and Ember gets dragged into the conga line and starts dancing because WWE has no idea how she is supposed to work.

No Way Jose vs. Jinder Mahal

Jinder kicks him down to start and it’s off to an early chinlock. Some knee drops keep Jose in trouble and the chinlock goes on again. Jose comes back with a middle rope crossbody and some clotheslines but Mahal drops him across the top rope. The Khallas gives Mahal the pin at 4:27.

Rating: F. A four minute match shouldn’t include two chinlocks. How can your offense be that limited when you’ve been doing this for so many years now? While I don’t think this is the resurgence of Mahal’s career, it’s painful to watch his terrible matches and seeing him win brings back some really harsh memories.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Open challenge and I actually collapsed a bit when I heard the record scratch. Ziggler says he’s going to get back to being the best in the world by becoming champion again. They hit the mat to start and Ziggler can’t quite keep up. Instead Rollins sends him outside and we take a break.

Back with Rollins in trouble and Ziggler ripping at his face. The chinlock goes on, Ziggler chokes on the ropes, and the chinlock goes on again. Ziggler puts on a third chinlock before throwing him outside for a second break. Back again with Rollins making a comeback and hitting the Sling Blade. An enziguri rocks Ziggler and Rollins heads up, only to get crotched back down. He shoves Ziggler down but misses the frog splash, setting up the Fameasser to give Ziggler two.

Ziggler’s jumping DDT is blocked so he settles for two off a small package instead. The sleeper goes on but Rollins drops him back and hits the low superkick for two. Rollins misses the Stomp and walks into the Zig Zag for another near fall. After looking at some fans being excited, Ziggler heads up top but Rollins catches him with the superplex into the Falcon Arrow to retain at 22:45.

Rating: B. It was a good match and I’ll give them some big points for the non-finisher ending, but egads I never need to see these two fight again. The match took a long time to get going but things picked up a lot after the break. I was starting to get into it at the end and that’s the best thing I can say about something on this show. As usual, Rollins is one of the more entertaining people, even if he was out there with Ziggler.

Here’s Bliss to host the open forum with Bayley and Banks. The first question is what would either of them change about the Raw women’s division. Sasha wants to send Bliss back to Smackdown but Bliss asks why Banks has let Bayley drag her down. That goes nowhere though as here are Mickie James, Alicia Fox and Dana Brooke to jump Banks and Bayley (last night Brooke was on the Starrcade special teaming with the two of them). Bayley and Banks clean house with ease anyway.

Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin

Balor goes straight at him but gets hit in the jaw. Just to get the self parody going. Corbin has a chinlock on less than thirty seconds in. Corbin gets sent outside for a kick to the chest and we take a break. Back with Corbin holding another chinlock and sending Balor into the corner. That means ANOTHER chinlock, followed by a clothesline, followed by the fourth chinlock in less than ten minutes. This isn’t the kind of thing you want in a featured match.

Deep Six looks to set up the End of Days but Balor is right back with the shotgun dropkick. The Coup de Grace misses though and Corbin grabs a mic, making it a 2-1 handicap match with Drew McIntyre joining him. Balor flip dives onto McIntyre and dropkicks Corbin into the timekeeper’s area but McIntyre jumps him from behind. The Claymore is good for the pin on Balor at 13:25.

Rating: D-. Corbin is just so bad in the ring and this was more of the same heel abuse of power stuff that we’ve seen for the better part of forever. Balor was just cannon fodder here and the match was bad because they let Corbin run things instead of doing anything exciting. Terrible main event.

Post match Lashley comes out for the triple beatdown to end the show. At least McIntyre seems to be away from Ziggler now and that’s some of the only good news on this show.

Overall Rating: F. As I said earlier, nope. This was a complete wreck of a show with about 1947 chinlocks and one terrible match after another. They were doing every warmed over leftover that they could find here. Rollins vs. Ziggler again. Corbin vs. Balor again. Jinder Mahal still being employed again. The heel authority figure that we’ve seen for TWENTY YEARS NOW again, and this time he spawned a new heel authority figure.

I guess it’s WWE’s version of a greatest hits show as they just do the same things they’ve done all year and present it like it’s new. Hopefully Christmas comes early this year so they can be asked to do something more interesting come Rumble time. Like Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman! Again!

Results

Bobby Lashley b. Elias – Gator roll

Lucha House Party b. Revival – Shooting star press to Dawson

AOP b. Chad Gable/Bobby Roode – Sitout powerbomb/neckbreaker combination to Roode

Ember Moon b. Alicia Fox – Eclipse

Jinder Mahal b. No Way Jose – Khallas

Seth Rollins b. Dolph Ziggler – Falcon Arrow

Baron Corbin/Drew McIntyre b. Finn Balor – Claymore

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

205 Live
Date: November 21, 2018
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Percy Watson, Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

We’re into a new area on this show as Buddy Murphy successfully defended the Cruiserweight Title against Mustafa Ali this Sunday at Survivor Series. That means we need a new challenger, but I can’t imagine that takes place tonight. 205 Live likes to set things up at a slightly slower pace and you never know when they’ll have their next title match anyway. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

The opening recap focuses on the pretty awesome title match with Ali coming up short again. They’ve got a nice Wrestlemania moment there if they can hold out long enough.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Buddy Murphy to get things going. Buddy has a question: did you really think Mustafa Ali was going to beat him? Well it doesn’t matter because the people’s opinion doesn’t matter to him. You can’t stop the unstoppable, but here’s Tony Nese to stop him from saying anything else, albeit in a nice way.

Tony Nese vs. Noam Dar

Before the match, Dar says he’s here to make some noise in the cruiserweight division because he’s been spending so much time in NXT UK. Nese shoulders him down and poses to start, showcasing the wide variety of taunting that he has available. Dar trips him down and gets two off a backslide. A dropkick puts Nese on the floor but Murphy offers a distraction so Nese can score with a gutbuster.

Back in and a running elbow to the face gives Nese two and it’s off to the bodyscissors. Nese misses a charge though and gets kicked off the ropes so Dar can start striking away. The northern lights suplex (Alicia Fox must have taught him that) gives Dar two and it’s off to a guillotine. That’s broken up through raw power but Nese can’t German suplex him into the corner. Instead it’s a big forearm to Dar but he kicks Nese in the head and face. Murphy breaks up the Nova Roller though and Nese hits the German suplex into the corner. The running knee finishes Dar at 8:14.

Rating: D+. This wasn’t one of these better performances as both of them felt like they were going much more slowly than in recent months. Nese and Murphy aren’t the most thrilling combination in the world but I get why the champ needs a lackey. Not terrible, but a pretty forgettable match, which is worse on this show.

Mustafa Ali is hurt but it’s more mentally than physically. He wants to embrace it though, because he wants to use it to get up the next time he’s knocked down. That means he owes Murphy a thank you because now he’s going to work even harder to turn this pain into power. One day he’ll become Cruiserweight Champion. When they finally do that, it’s going to be a great moment.

Drake Maverick tells the referee to be ready for shenanigans (his word) in the main event. The referee leaves when Cedric Alexander comes in so Drake can make Alexander/Ali vs. Murphy/Nese for next week. Fair enough.

Akira Tozawa/Brian Kendrick vs. ???/???

Tozawa and Kendrick share a hesitant handshake as Drew Gulak and Jack Gallagher are watching in the back. Gallagher doesn’t think much of Kendrick aligning himself with a wailing scoundrel like Tozawa. Kendrick grabs a cravate and slaps on an armbar as the jobbers don’t even have names to start.

The backsplash gives Tozawa two and it’s time for the chops. A double big boot gives Kendrick two and it’s off to the other unnamed jobber for a Downward Spiral/kick to the back of the head combination. The first one gets in a clothesline but a spinwheel kick cuts him off. It’s back to Tozawa to clean house with the backsplash and a missile dropkick, followed by Sliced Bread #2. The top rope backsplash gives Tozawa the pin at 3:26.

Rating: C-. Tozawa and Kendrick looked good together though I can’t say I’m thrilled with the idea of seeing the two of them face Gulak and Gallagher. It hasn’t been a thrilling feud and I don’t see that getting any better when they have the tag match. Maybe a stipulation could help, but it’s just not all that interesting.

Murphy and Nese aren’t worried about the tag match as Murphy has beaten both Alexander and Ali by himself.

Hideo Itami is back next week.

Gran Metalik vs. TJP

The pinatas are multiplying. TJP has Mike and Maria Kanellis with him and the guys all have House Party masks. Drake Maverick isn’t having that though and ejects everyone but TJP and Metalik. Metalik wastes no time in hitting a big flip dive to the floor and throws TJP back in, only to have him roll back outside. Back in and a reverse Sling Blade has TJP in trouble until he slaps on something like a half crab Scorpion Deathlock.

Now it’s TJP hitting a big dive of his own but comes up favoring his ankle. The leg is fine enough to hit a belly to back suplex for two and it’s off to the chinlock. That goes nowhere so TJP hits a gutbuster for two instead. The Muta Lock goes on as TJP is going all over on Metalik here. Metalik finally grabs a rope to get out of the leglock so TJP gives it until four before the break. That’s what a smart heel should be doing and he’s rather good at what he does.

TJP heads up but gets kicked in the head, setting up a dropkick to the back for two. The moonsault hits feet though and TJP grabs a Batista Bomb. Metalik is right back with the rope walk dropkick for two of his own and a hurricanrana off the apron in a cool looking spot. Back in and the Metalik Driver sets up the top rope elbow but TJP reverses into the kneebar. Metalik makes the rope so TJP goes after the pinata. You just don’t do that and it’s a sunset flip to finish TJP at 9:26.

Rating: C+. Nice match here with Metalik being on his own offering a good idea. You can only get so far with the three faces having the advantage so it was a smart move to push Metalik on his own for a change. He’s talented enough to have a good match and that’s what we got here. It also helps when TJP can work well with anyone.

Post match Maria comes out, losing it on Maverick, but it’s a distraction so Mike can come in with the chair to the House Party. The beatdown is on to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This was a show mainly focused on the midcarders and that’s not the worst thing in the world. You have to give this level some attention every now and then. It makes them mean more later on as otherwise it feels like nothing but filler. It’s an investment in the future and we happened to get a fine show as a result. Nothing wrong with that and the stories were advanced just enough here.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: November 22, 2018
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Ember Moon vs. Alicia Fox

Fox flips her down to start but Moon is right back up, much to Fox’s annoyance. A headscissors has Moon in more trouble and there’s a shot to the face for bad measure. Back up and Moon charges into some boots in the corner, followed by a hair pull to the mat. There’s a flipping neckbreaker as Fox is getting in way more offense than I would have expected. The chinlock goes on with Moon being pulled back down by the hair. Moon makes the comeback with some flying forearms but Fox gets two off a big boot. Ember hits Wade Barrett’s spinning suplex out of the corner, followed by the Eclipse for the pin at 5:38.

Rating: C-. Better match than you would have guessed here as Moon sold a lot, even though it was for Fox. The comeback wasn’t exactly in doubt and the Eclipse looked good as always. That’s all you need from a match like this and considering what it probably should have been, we’ll call this a nice surprise.

Highlights of Charlotte snapping on Ronda Rousey at Survivor Series, which wasn’t a heel turn in this modern wrestling world.

From Raw.

Here’s Rousey for a chat. She knows she’s defending the title against Nia Jax at TLC and knows how dangerous Jax is. Just look at what happened to Becky’s face. At TLC, Nia is tapping out and then the next chapter of Rousey is being written. She’s not out here to get sympathy because that’s not what a champion does. A champion is ready to fight at all times or they step aside. The fans chant for Becky but Rousey says this is her worst day. She wants to defend the title right now though because she’s a champion.

And from Smackdown.

Here’s Charlotte to get things going. Charlotte is very proud of what she did on Sunday and some of the fans don’t seem to mind. Rousey is moving around a little more slowly since Sunday because Charlotte was fighting for everyone in the back. She was fighting for Becky Lynch, who wanted Rousey to take the beating of her life. Well mission accomplished, because Rousey bowed down to the queen.

Cue Paige, to remind Charlotte that Rousey is coming for her soon enough. Charlotte shoved a bunch of referees on Sunday so it’s going to be a $100,000 fine. This brings out the IIconics, who know they’re Paige’s favorite. They want the $100,000 (It’s not a bounty.) so Charlotte will fight one of them right now.

Charlotte vs. Billie Kay

Charlotte sends her outside to start but a Peyton Royce distraction lets Billie get in a big boot to take over. Some right hands keep Charlotte in trouble but she’s right back up with a few shots of her own. Natural Selection finishes Kay at 3:14.

Rating: D. Well what else are you supposed to say about that? Charlotte seemingly turned heel on Sunday and now she’s squashing a heel jobber here. I’m sure this is exactly what WWE had planned and makes perfect sense if you squint hard enough, but I’m still trying to get over Charlotte fighting for Becky, who she hated just a few weeks ago.

Post match Charlotte tells Peyton to get in here but she’d rather leave.

Charlotte vs. Peyton Royce

So much for that. Joined in progress with Peyton hitting some knees to the face for two each and we hit the chinlock. Kay offers a distraction but Charlotte cuts Peyton off with a big boot. That’s enough to draw Kay in for the DQ at 1:48.

Post match the IIconics take her to the floor and grab a chair but Charlotte spears both of them down and rams them into the announcers’ table over and over. Charlotte knees them in the head and throws them over the table before posing a bit. I have no idea where we are right now. Is Charlotte a heel when she’s fighting Rousey but a face when she’s back on Smackdown? Am I missing something?

From Smackdown again.

Here’s Daniel Bryan for a chat. Speaking in the third person, Bryan says he gave up on his dreams three years ago and betrayed himself when he retired. The difference between Bryan and the people is he doesn’t give up and accept failure. He decided to fight and went to every doctor he could find and spent three hours inside a hyperbolic chamber every day. The healing worked but it also allowed him to meditate on his mantra of “fight for your dreams and your dreams will fight for you.” And it worked!

How else can you explain the miracle of him being able to return to the ring? He heard the loudest YES chants ever and it was a great moment. For these people though, it was just a moment because they weren’t there for the struggle and the pain. They weren’t there for everyone telling him to move on. The people were the only ones who moved on and you can hear it as these idiots chant for AJ Styles.

Bryan calls them fickle and says last week, Bryan’s dreams took over like they were programmed to do and kicked AJ low. Bryan’s dreams told him that he didn’t need to beat Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series because he won when Brock beat the weakness out of him. There would be a new emergence after that match because the old Bryan, the one that these people loved, is dead. The YES Movement is dead and all that’s left is Daniel Bryan: WWE Champion. All that matters is that you never give up on your dreams. He goes to leave but has the announcer say he is the NEW Daniel Bryan.

It’s going to take some time to see how this sticks, but I think I can go with it for now. The problem of course is the fans cheering Bryan anyway because he’s going to be great in this role, but WWE has pretty clearly given up on the concepts of faces and heels so you can’t exactly expect anything else.

We look at Braun Strowman’s elbow being destroyed on Raw.

Apollo Crews vs. Jinder Mahal

Rematch from Raw, in case you didn’t think Mahal could slide further down the ladder. Mahal shoves him into the corner to start but stops to breathe. Apollo flips up though and does a little breathing of his own. A kick to the gut slows Crews down so he pops up with a back elbow to the jaw.

That means the over the top dive to take Mahal out again and we take a break. Back with Mahal grabbing the chinlock for a long time until Crews fights up. That means a jumping clothesline but Mahal kicks him in the face. Not that it matters as Crews hits the jumping enziguri, followed by the gorilla press and standing moonsault for the pin at 9:33.

Rating: D. There was too much chinlockery in there but it’s not like Mahal has anything else to do. It says a lot when Crews has clearly surpassed you but it seems that reality has finally set in on the whole Mahal mess. Thankfully WWE has finally caught up on what everyone else knew over a year ago, but that doesn’t make up for what we had to deal with last year.

And from Raw to close things out.

Overall Rating: C. This was a step up from the usual Main Event with the right selection of highlights. There was a lot going on over the course of the week and this show covered just about every big thing going on. Couple that with Mahal losing all over again and this show brings a nice smile to my face.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

It shouldn’t be this complicated.

Why does almost any heel action have to be some kind of an angle? If someone puts their feet on the ropes, grabs the trunks or does anything of that nature, it’s some angle that has to be advanced to next week or some big moment that has to be replayed half a dozen times, often just on that night alone.

Back in the day, heels did those kinds of things because they’re heels. Ric Flair was famous for throwing his fee ton the ropes for a pin even when he didn’t need them because that’s the kind of guy he was. Why did he do that? In the words of Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, “When are you going to get it through your head? I’M EVIL!” Let the villains be villains for the sake of being villains and stop making every action be some big moment.