IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 27, 2004
Location: Mississippi Coast Coliseum, Biloxi, Mississippi
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

It’s the final show of a year that wasn’t very good in the first place. We’re coming off the Best of 2004 last week so it’s been a little while since we’ve gotten anything new. The big story is still the build towards the Elimination Chamber at New Year’s Revolution. Other than that, things aren’t the most exciting around here. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Eric Bischoff announcing the Elimination Chamber. Flair’s “oh s***” look at Batista when he was announced for the Chamber was a great touch that I missed before. It makes sense that they would start there as it’s not like there is anything else going on at the moment.

Here’s Bischoff in the arena to explain the Elimination Chamber. Makes sense as there have only been two of them and we haven’t seen it in over a year. As for tonight, all six participants will be taking part in singles matches against mystery opponents, with the one who wins in the shortest time getting to enter last. If any of them lose, they’re out of the Chamber and replaced by whoever beats them. We’ll call it the Beat The Clock Challenge and Christy Hemme will be timekeeper. Oh and there will be a guest referee for the Chamber, who will be announced later tonight. Works for me.

Beat The Clock Challenge: Chris Jericho vs. Christian

Christian has Tomko with him. Christian goes with a slap to the face and a slap to start so Jericho tries the fast pins which never work in a match like this. A sunset flip from Christian sets up a pinfall reversal sequence but the Walls are countered into a small package for two more. Some right hands in the corner have Jericho in more trouble and we hit the chinlock, which goes through a few forms.

Jericho gets sent to the apron but he backdrops Christian over, with Christian landing face first on the floor in a nasty crash. We’re not done yet though as Jericho springboards onto both villains as we take a break. Back with Jericho hitting a crossbody for two, followed by Tomko getting in a cheap shot to give Christian the same. Jericho has had it with Tomko and dropkicks him down before reversing Christian’s rollup into the Walls for the win at 10:47.

Rating: C+. Good match here but you have to expect that from the two of them. It was nice to have some stakes in the match though and the idea that Christian could get in made it better. The time thing is something that can work quite well and makes the matches later on mean something, so at least we’re off to a nice start.

Ric Flair tries to calm HHH down while Batista doesn’t care who he’s facing tonight. The question is why HHH isn’t confident. HHH tries to talk his way out of it and bets $100 that he beats Batista’s time. Flair intervenes again and makes it clear that this is all about HHH, though Batista doesn’t seem phased.

Randy Orton is excited to go into the Chamber since he was able to challenge for the World Title. And they wonder why the face turn didn’t work. His New Year’s resolution is to go to New Year’s Revolution and win the title. Tonight though, he’s winning in the fastest time.

Beat The Clock Challenge: Randy Orton vs. Maven

Christy has changed outfits for the match and the clock is set at 10:47, meaning the countdown clock counts down in a logical move. They lock up to start until Orton hits the dropkick. Maven catches him on top though and sneaks in a poke to the eye, allowing him to shove Orton off the apron. That means a hard ram into the steps and Maven mocks Orton’s pose (with King referring to Orton as the Big O).

The chinlock goes on for a good while until Maven sends him outside. King: “Orton, you cannot win this match out on the floor!” Uh, yeah he can. Orton hits a Russian legsweep into the barricade and the hanging DDT plants Maven back inside. Maven is fine enough to roll through a high crossbody into a rollup for two but it’s the RKO to give Orton the pin at 6:14.

Rating: D+. Not as good of a match as the previous one but Maven isn’t as good as Christian. Orton’s face push still isn’t working, though he’s getting some positive reactions when he’s in the ring. The character just isn’t quite there though and having him not be able to fight for the title for three months was death to the whole thing.

Lita vs. Molly Holly

Non-title. Molly follows Christian’s plan from earlier and slaps Lita in the face. This time works a bit better though as she sends Lita into the corner and grabs a chinlock as JR recaps Lita’s rather up and down year. A monkey flip lets Lita hit some right hands and there’s a headbutt to the ribs for two. Molly misses a charge into the corner and the DDT gives Lita the fast pin.

Post match here’s Snitsky to chase Lita through the crowd and into the back. Lita gets into a room so here’s Bischoff to make Kane vs. Snitsky at New Year’s Revolution.

Simon Dean vs. Rosey

This is fallout from Heat, which either took place last night or two weeks ago depending on if you believe JR or the graphic. Before the match, Simon does the standard YOU’RE ALL FAT stuff. Being called a hog is too much for Rosey, who pulls Simon in to start the beating. For some reason Dean tries a sunset flip, earning himself a big sitdown splash.

Dean gets smart by going after the knee, including wrapping it around the post. The fans don’t like Simon as he works on the knee but Rosey’s comeback gets their attention a bit. It doesn’t go well for Rosey though as the Vader Bomb misses, though Dean decides to go for a slam for some reason. After that falls apart, Rosey grabs Dean’s weightlifting belt and gets rolled up for the pin.

Rating: D. What are you expecting here? Dean is a lower card heel and nothing more than that, which is fine for something short like this. Rosey on the other hand looks like a goof who can’t beat someone like Dean, which doesn’t exactly make me care about either guy. Then again, I don’t know how far they’re expecting Dean to go in the first place.

Beat The Clock Challenge: Edge vs. Eugene

The clock is set at 6:14 so Edge jumps him before the bell to start fast. Eugene fights back without even taking off his ring jacket and gets in a hiptoss. Edge gets sent outside so the jacket can come off but the delay lets Edge snap his throat across the top. The chinlock goes on in a rather dumb move, followed by Edge hitting a dropkick for two. It’s back to the reverse chinlock with less than three minutes to go as Edge keeps wasting time. Eugene fights up and hits an electric chair drop, setting up a crisscross. That’s enough for Eugene to head outside and high five some fans as the clock keeps ticking.

Eugene even hides under the ring as the clock continues to tick away. Back in and Eugene tries a Rock Bottom and Stunner but gets reversed into the spear….which sends Eugene to the floor as time expires. The match keeps going though as Eugene could still win and take the spot. Back in and Eugene hits the Stunner for a very delayed two but a running knee hits the buckle. Edge wraps the knee around the post and debuts (I believe) the Edgecator (the Sharpshooter without stepping over) for the win.

Rating: C-. Not too bad here with the clock playing more of a role this time around. Edge getting frustrated and not making the time was a nice twist, even though there was almost no way the change was coming here. The Beat the Clock thing has worked so far as it’s adding in some drama, which is a lot better than building momentum matches.

Bischoff is on the phone and is glad that someone will make it here tonight. Coach comes in and gives Bischoff his Christmas present: some Coach sunglasses. The call was from the guest referee but Coach doesn’t get to know who it was in advance.

Beat The Clock Challenge: Chris Benoit vs. Viscera

The clock is still at 6:14. Viscera shoves him down without much effort to start as JR and King have no idea how Benoit can pull this off. Benoit gets smart by going after the legs so Viscera runs him over again. That’s fine with Benoit, who tries the chops but walks into a spinwheel kick. Viscera mounts Benoit on the mat for some shots to the face in a rather disturbing image.

A Samoan drop crushes Benoit again and the Crossface attempt is easily countered into a side slam. Benoit somehow manages a belly to back suplex and the Crossface (or Crossthroat here) with Viscera waiting a ridiculous forty seconds before tapping (or moving for that matter) to give Benoit the win at 5:43.

Rating: D. What in the world was that ending? Viscera doing his giant thing for most of the match was fine but did HHH even survive that long in the Crossface at Wrestlemania? I’m hoping it was just a clock thing where they needed the time lower, but at least roll over or fight for the escape or something.

Here’s Stacy Keibler to say he hopes we had a great Christmas. 2004 was a great year and thank you for voting her the Babe of the Year. She’ll bend over backwards and forward to make 2005 that much better. Thankfully Muhammad Hassan and Daivari come out to break up this scintillating promo. Daivari throws Stacy out and Hassan rants about Christmas before going into his same standard speech about how prejudiced we all are.

The fans drown him out with a USA chant so Daivari goes up to commentary to yell at JR and King. Hassan joins them as Lawler gets up and threatens Daivari, meaning the fight is on. JR gets knocked down and Jerry gets in Hassan’s face, meaning a New Year’s Revolution match is likely.

Beat The Clock Challenge: Batista vs. Rhyno

The clock is set at 5:43. Batista tells Rhyno to bring it to start and then elbows him in the face. A shoulder goes well for Batista again as Rhyno’s power game is completely outmatched here. Rhyno gets in a quick Gore for two and Batista is right back up with the Batista Bomb. Batista is so confident that he hits a second one for the pin at 3:02.

Rating: D+. Oh yeah they know what they’re doing with Batista. This was a monster style match with Batista shrugging off an established finisher and nearly cutting Benoit’s time in half. I still don’t think it’s fair to blame Orton’s face push on Orton himself but sweet goodness Batista is nailing every single thing about this push.

Video on Tribute to the Troops.

Coach interrupts Bischoff talking to Candice Michelle to say the special referee is here. Bischoff wants to know how Coach knows he’s here if he doesn’t know the referee. Coach says it has to be him but here’s Hassan to interrupt. He doesn’t like JR and King’s anti-Arab American propaganda so we should have a debate. Bischoff says no because JR isn’t a wrestler, so we’ll have…..a debate. The complete lack of a crowd reaction should tell you all you need to know.

New Year’s Revolution rundown.

HHH complains to Flair about Batista, who doesn’t see the problem. Batista says HHH is starting to tick him off and THAT gets the fans’ attention. Flair plays peacekeeper, again.

Beat The Clock Challenge: Shelton Benjamin vs. HHH

Non-title and the clock is set at 3:02. Everyone else in the Chamber is sitting at ringside. Also, is this a fair match for HHH? Maven, Rhyno, Viscera and the Intercontinental Champion? HHH goes right after him to start and sends Benjamin to the floor, with Lawler again incorrectly saying he can’t win out there. A whip into the steps has Shelton in more trouble and HHH hammers away with right hands. There’s the spinebuster for two and we hit the sleeper to keep HHH in control.

A way too early Pedigree attempt is countered so HHH goes back to the sleeper. HHH gets two arm drops but Shelton gets his foot on the rope as it drops the third time. The celebration is on but time expires to anger HHH all over again. Shelton hits a quick Stinger Splash for two as King starts to panic. There’s the Dragon Whip for two more but HHH gets in a spinebuster for the same. Flair offers a distraction so the exploder doesn’t get a count. Shelton gets rid of Flair and the Pedigree gives HHH the pin.

Rating: C. I liked this more than I should have with HHH being aggressive but not being able to seal the deal. Once the clock expired though, fans got more into things as the possibility that HHH might not make it intrigued them quite a bit. Shelton was even protected in the loss, making this quite a nice little piece of business, especially given the short amount of time.

Post match HHH is relieved but Bischoff brings out Shawn Michaels as guest referee for the Chamber so everyone can freak out to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. They kept things moving this week and it made for a much better show. The matches might not have been masterpieces but the clock deal was a nice touch and it offered something a little different for a change. That’s as good as you’re going to get when so much of the roster is tied up in one match and it wound up being a good show to end the show.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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

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

This might never be said again.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-giant-weasel-bad-idea/

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: May 28, 2019
Location: BOK Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

We’re finishing the month tonight with another night of pumping up Super ShowDown, which may in fact be better than (or equal to) Wrestlemania. Whatever is presented tonight almost has to be better than last night’s show, but WWE has shown an incredible ability to lower the bar before. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Dolph Ziggler returning last week and destroying Kofi Kingston.

Here’s Kevin Owens for a match but you know we can’t start things off that easily. Before he gets to talk, we see a long video on Owens joining and then turning on New Day, plus attacking Big E.’s knee last week. Back in the arena, Owens talks about how he wanted to do a Kevin Owens Show here but Oklahoma doesn’t deserve him. He’s been accused of attacking Big E. but he had nothing to do with that. Owens likes the idea of Dolph Ziggler winning the WWE Championship because it will be due to what Owens has done. Cue Owens’ opponent to cut him off.

Kofi Kingston vs. Kevin Owens

Non-title. Hang on again though as Kofi grabs the mic and says he doesn’t believe Owens didn’t attack Big E. Owens lied about wanting to be part of the New Day because he is a liar. Kofi says tonight, Owens is going to pay for what he did to Big E.’s knee and attacking Woods week in and week out. Kofi dropkicks him at the bell but Owens drops him on the back of his head to take over as we hit an early break.

Back with Kofi in trouble but managing to fight out of a chinlock. Owens pulls him right back down and send Kofi head first into the mat. For some reason Owens goes for Kofi’s feet but gets kicked to the floor, setting up the big dive over the top to drop Owens again. We take another break and come back again with Kofi fighting out of another chinlock. Owens sends him outside again though and hits a frog splash off the apron to crush the ribs all over again.

That’s good for a nine count, followed by another frog splash for two back inside. Owens goes up top but this time Kofi is there to forearm away. A headbutt knocks Kofi down and the Swanton gets two as these kickouts are becoming way too much to take. The Pop Up powerbomb is countered and a quick Trouble in Paradise gives Kofi the pin at 16:48.

Rating: C+. Yeah that was too much for Kofi to survive and Owens was hurt pretty badly by not being able to beat him after two frog splashes and a Swanton. Kofi surviving three big spots like that took me out of things and I just didn’t buy it. The rest of the match was good, but it was hard to believe what I was seeing.

R-Truth and Carmella run from everyone with Truth saying how hard it is to defend the European Title. He has to run all the time, even at the dentist’s office. Do you know how hard it is to get a cavity filled when you have to kick out of pins? They run off and evade Drake Maverick, who has the wanted posters again.

Here are Daniel Bryan and Rowan for a chat. Bryan calls the Smackdown tag team division a joke, which is completely accurate. Rowan even makes a knock knock joke to make it clear how bad the division really is. They’re no joke though because they have big plans. While fat, ignorant humans ate the beautiful creatures over Memorial Day, such as an intelligent pig named Wiggles or a cow named Wilbur, they didn’t realize that those creatures had names.

Oklahoma is worse than anyone else, with their fracking and oil well drilling, which brings them earthquakes. The fans cheer for that but the intimidated Kayla Braxton says that there are some teams who want to challenge them. Cue Heavy Machinery with Otis hitting the gyrations. They want a title shot right now and here’s a referee. Bryan and Rowan accept the challenge, but not in a fracking state like this. Heavy Machinery make sense as challengers, though Bryan is right about the division being so bad.

Sonya Deville is proud of Mandy Rose being on the cover of Muscle and Fitness Hers Magazine and the two hand out copies to some people. They run into Ember Moon, who is sitting around reading Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of all things. Sonya gives her all the magazines because she needs them to be a star.

Carmella vs. Mandy Rose

Mandy gets half an entrance and armdrags Carmella down to start. She shows off the magazine, which Carmella kicks away. A Thesz press has Mandy in trouble but she sends Carmella face first into the middle buckle. The chinlock goes on for a bit, followed by a jumping knee to the face. Carmella sends her into the corner for a quick Bronco Buster but has to superkick Sonya down. That’s enough for Mandy to get a rollup pin at 3:10.

Rating: D. This was an advertisement disguised as a match and there’s nothing wrong with that. Mandy being on the cover of the magazine is a nice accomplishment and they did a fine job of letting people know about it. Besides it’s not like a three minute match is going to hurt things, especially after last night’s minute and a half of action in the first seventy minutes.

Jinder Mahal jumps Truth but gets thrown outside for his efforts. Truth hides in a well placed photo booth, which allows the mob to run past him. Drake Maverick FINALLY runs into him and the chase is on again.

Aleister Black says he gets it. Everyone is waiting for Black to throw out a name and pick a fight with someone. There lies the conundrum though. He is sitting here waiting patiently for someone, anyone, to pick a fight with him. Well it’s better than the weird poetry.

Here are Shane McMahon, Elias and Drew McIntyre for Shane McMahon Appreciation Night. Shane says he doesn’t do what he does night in and night out for a trophy or adulation. He just enjoys his life and being out here in front of these people. Shane came back home to help run a family business and the greatest praise he can have is the company’s success.

We see a Shane highlight package, which continues to show that WWE doesn’t quite get how to present Shane. Back in the arena, Shane praises Kevin Dunn for the video (Shane: “Don’t boo Kevin Dunn.”) and says it was for Roman Reigns. A few weeks ago, Reigns punched Vince McMahon and that was biting the hand that feeds him. At Super ShowDown, Shane is going to beat some respect into him. Elias sings about how Shane is the best in the world and how Texas is better than Oklahoma….and here are R-Truth and Drake Maverick.

Truth hits a gordbuster and pins Maverick but Shane isn’t happy with the dancing. As I try to figure out why Truth bothered to pin him, the beatdown is on with Elias hitting Drift Away and McIntyre adding the Claymore….so Elias can win the title. Shane is out of breath from that thirty seconds of action but still manages to make Elias/McIntyre vs. Truth/Reigns. The 24/7 rules are suspended until the end of the match so Elias can focus.

Charlotte and Lacey Evans are having tea and rip on Becky Lynch and Bayley for being rude. Now that Becky has lost her title, it’s time to send Bayley back to the kiddie pool.

Lars Sullivan vs. Lucha House Party is set for Super ShowDown.

Bayley vs. Lacey Evans

Non-title with Charlotte on commentary. Bayley starts fast with a rollup but gets sent into the corner. Lacey walks into a knee to the face but she’s fine enough to send Bayley outside where Charlotte stands up as we take a break. Back with Bayley hitting a crossbody for two until Lacey sends her into the corner again. Lacey pulls out the wipe for some annoyance but Bayley grabs the Stunner over the ropes. It’s time to head outside with Charlotte getting involved again, earning herself a shove from Bayley. Charlotte charges in and the distraction lets Bayley get a rollup to put Evans away at 7:17.

Rating: D+. I’m glad that they’re giving Bayley an actual push for a change though Evans shouldn’t be taking pins when she’s coming up on another shot at Becky Lynch. Then again that would suggest not having this match in the first place and that seems to be a little too much to ask for from WWE.

Post match Bayley leaves and Lacey goes after Charlotte, earning herself a big foot to the face.

Video on HHH vs. Randy Orton.

We see a promo from last week where Finn Balor said he was banged up in Money in the Bank. That’s why he didn’t get to perform last week and he’s not happy about it.

Andrade says he powerbombed Balor on the ladder and it’s going to be worse at Super ShowDown.

Here’s this week’s Firefly Fun House.

Roman Reigns/R-Truth vs. Elias/Drew McIntyre

Truth is banged up and the 24/7 Rules are suspended. Hang on as Elias, McIntyre and Shane jump Truth during his entrance. Reigns helps beat up Elias and McIntyre as Shane gets stared up the ramp. The bell rings and Shane offers a distraction so Elias can hammer away on Reigns in the corner. The neck crank has Reigns in early trouble until a Samoan drop breaks things up. Truth actually comes in so it’s a Glasgow Kiss to cut him off in a hurry. Drew whips him into the barricade and we take a break.

Back with Truth still in trouble as Elias and McIntyre take turns beating on him. Truth manages to send Drew outside though and the diving tag brings in Reigns for a nice reaction. The corner clotheslines and a big boot drop Elias as everything breaks down. The apron boot hits Elias but Reigns has to punch Shane in the face. Drew misses the Claymore on the distracted Reigns and it’s a spear to finish Elias at 10:44.

Rating: D+. Just a main event tag here and there wasn’t exactly a lot of doubt in how things were going to be finishing up. If nothing else though, it was nice to have Shane be the pesky manager he should be rather than getting in the ring to have these matches. He’s fine in that role, but for some reason WWE would rather have him be competitive in major matches. I’m sure there’s no connection to that and the lack of solid, top heels in the company.

Post match Reigns has an idea and spears Elias again so Truth can win the title back. I mean, it is beneath Reigns to win it after all.

Overall Rating: C-. It really is amazing how far Raw has fallen when this show, which was only kind of good at times, blows it completely out of the water. The wrestling was average at best and there wasn’t really anything you needed to see but there were never any moments where I wanted to go jump off a balcony or stick my head in a vice. It’s still not great, but I’ll take watchable over….whatever Monday was every day.

Results

Kofi Kingston b. Kevin Owens – Trouble in Paradise

Mandy Rose b. Carmella – Rollup

Bayley b. Lacey Evans – Rollup

Roman Reigns/R-Truth b. Elias/Drew McIntyre – Spear to Elias

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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 #59
Date: May 25, 2019
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Jim Cornette

It’s time for a big night around here as the World Title is on the line with Tom Lawlor defending against Avalanche. They’ve done a very good job of making these World Title matches feel important as the champ is very rarely in the arena, yet almost always makes a brief appearance, even in a pre-taped cameo. It’s been working well for me and hopefully that continues here. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Lawlor winning the title and promising to face anyone from all over the world, including Avalanche from Germany.

Opening sequence.

We look at Brian Pillman Jr. beating Rich Swann in last week’s main event.

The Dynasty is preparing for Alexander Hammerstone to win the National Title and all the money that it’s going to bring in. They don’t like the Hart Foundation and Hammerstone has a big arm.

Ace Romero/Barrington Hughes vs. Contra

That would be Josef Samael/Jacob Fatu for Contra here. The brawl is on in a hurry with Romero and Fatu having an early standoff. Samael busts out his spike though and knocks Romero cold, leaving Fatu to hit the moonsault for the pin on Hughes at 1:12. Again, exactly what it should have been.

Post match the beatdown stays on as the announcers talk about the lights flickering, though they don’t seem to be changing that much. The big guys are left laying.

Salina de la Renta plays coy about LA Park cashing in his title shot.

Earlier today, Contra attacked the Lucha Bros and Fenix took a fireball to the face.

Video on the Von Erichs, who are still coming.

Fenix has been tended to and lost a lot of skin from the fireball.

Video on Contra attacking Tom Lawlor.

Lawlor says he doesn’t get shaken by anything and people should be worried about how to get the title off of him. It doesn’t matter if you’re a bag of bones, guys from an 80s video game or an avalanche from German because he’s ready.

Fury Road Control Center, now with the Contra logo popping up without being acknowledged.

We look back at Teddy Hart winning the Middleweight Title and holding the belt for several months since. Jimmy Havoc is coming for the title because he’s willing to do anything to hurt his opponents.

Mance Warner goes to the pay window, which has three floors: jobbers at the bottom, midcarders in the middle and old Mancer right at the top with the main eventers. That’s what he does every time and gets paid to do it. That southern voice is easy to like and this was short and to the point, with Mance mentioning being from the south, drinking light beer and poking eyes. What more do you need to know about him in about forty seconds?

Promociones Dorado vs. Chris Pagan/Troy Hollywood

It’s Low Ki and Ricky Martinez for Dorado here, though Low Ki doesn’t seem happy with Salina. Dorado jumps them before the belly with Pagan being knocked silly on the apron. A hard clothesline drops Hollywood and it’s a top rope double stomp to the back to give Low Ki the pin at 1:10. The night of squashes continue.

Post match here’s Contra and the fans are VERY interested. Martinez and Salina bail though and Low Ki gets beaten down, including a great looking pop up Samoan drop. That’s how you book something interesting: build up two people (including destroying a team each tonight) and then put them against each other because it’s hard to imagine either of them losing to the other. Then sell tickets.

The Hart Foundation give Pillman tips for facing Hammerstone next week with the big suggestion being to tire him out. Pillman knows Hammerstone is big and strong but his dad told him about the size of the fight in the (yellow) dog. This win is for his family. Not a great promo from Pillman, though the story is there.

We look at what happened to Contra tonight.

Low Ki is still in the ring.

Backstage interviewer Kasey Lennox is distraught over what Contra has done all night.

We recap tonight’s Contra stuff (second time in three minutes) and the hint that Park could cash in his World Title match tonight.

MLW World Title: Robert Dreissker vs. Tom Lawlor

Lawlor is defending and Dreissker is called Avalanche. They’ve done well with making Lawlor feel like a big deal and so much of that is he’s rarely in action. Make that a special occasion. Lawlor strikes away to start and gets knocked into the corner with no effort. Some kicks to the leg work a lot better for the champ and now the strikes to the chest have some more success.

Avalanche gets knocked down so Lawlor can kick at the chest and hit a running seated clothesline for two. A hard kick sends Lawlor outside and Avalanche crushes him with a splash against the post. Back in and Dreissker hits the required big splash for two, followed by a big shoulder to send Lawlor flying. There’s a hard whip into the corner and Lawlor is in even more trouble.

More strikes give Lawlor a breather but Dreissker gives him a northern lights suplex to cut the champ off again. Lawlor manages a release German suplex though and the comeback is on. Forearms in the corner take Dreissker down but he’s right back with another running splash. The Vader Bomb misses though and a hard knee to the face drops Dreissker. The rear naked choke retains the title at 7:52.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t a masterpiece or anything but it had a fine enough story and that’s all you can really expect. Dreissker doesn’t have a resume around here and there’s no issue between the two of them aside from Dreissker wanting the title. They did what they could with what they had and it came out well enough.

Post match here’s Contra again and the beatdown is on. Fatu hits the moonsault and they drape the Contra flag over him, with Lawlor still trying to grab the title for a nice touch.

We cut to the back where Salina de la Renta tells LA Park to cash in now but Sami Callihan and Mance Warner jump him to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This might be the best show they’ve done yet as it felt like big stuff was happening here. I wanted to see more of what they were going for and Contra looked like monsters all over again. Throw in the World Title match and building up to next week’s live special and I’m not sure what more you could ask for. They probably could have cut one or two of the recaps and done another promo or something, but this was a very good show and on another level than most of what they do.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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: May 27, 2019
Location: Sprint Center, Kansas City, Missouri
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

This is going to be an interesting show but that might be the case without the show actually being interesting. It’s the first show after the rather great Double Or Nothing event, meaning WWE might be trying to show that they still have it. At the same time though it’s also Memorial Day, meaning the effort might not be there. On the third hand, there are only two shows left before Super ShowDown and some building could be useful. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with the traditional long Memorial Day video.

Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar are here for the cash-in announcement, despite a four way #1 contenders match being announced for tonight.

Here’s Kofi Kingston to open things up, seemingly fine six days after the big beating from Dolph Ziggler, which we see in video form. Kofi is here because he’s a fighting champion but also because he wants to deal with Mr. Money In The Bank. He’ll fight anyone anytime and he wants Brock to cash in right here right now.

Instead he gets Seth Rollins (Seth: “I know I’m not Brock Lesnar. I’m better.”) to say he wants to know what Lesnar is doing with the briefcase too. The champs are here so get Lesnar out here right now. This brings out Lesnar, who has different music because he’s actually turned the briefcase into a boom box, complete with speakers and DANCING.

The box starts playing New Day music and Kofi is in but it switches over to Rollins’ music, complete with Heyman playing air guitar. Rollins leaves and the music stops with Heyman accusing Seth of ruining the Brock Party. Heyman and Lesnar leave and Ziggler comes out to jump Kofi, including a Zig Zag on the ramp. Xavier Woods runs out for the save as we’re already three fours of the way done with Wild Card entries tonight.

Post break Kofi is being helped out and Ziggler jumps him again, triggering another brawl with Woods. They fight into the crowd with Woods getting the better of it and throwing a trashcan at Ziggler. It heads back to ringside with Ziggler getting in some chair shots on the floor and in the ring. The chair is wrapped around Woods’ head but Kofi runs out with his own chair for the save.

Back from another break with Kofi and Woods still in the ring and Ziggler coming back out and saying he wants Kofi to enjoy the time he has left. Kofi is the best WWE Champion Ziggler can remember but it still should have been him. For years, Kofi has had two friends to help his popularity, but what happens when he loses the title? At Super ShowDown, Ziggler is taking the title.

There’s a Memorial Day party in the back with most of the lower card around and the Usos have brought in a DJ. First up though, Happy Birthday Natalya! Everybody is invited, aside from the Revival of course. More on this later I’m sure.

Shane McMahon comes out for a match….and then changes his mind.

Video on Randy Orton vs. HHH.

Here are Shane and Drew McIntyre (who were in the ring before the video played) to talk about the history of the McMahon Family vs. the Samoan dynasty, which has been going on since before either Roman Reigns or Shane were alive. It all comes down to respect though, which is not something that Reigns has shown.

Shane talks about the members of the Samoan wrestling family, but the Wild Samoans might have been the most insane of them all. Now Shane isn’t going to run down the Wild Samoans, but the reality is that Vince was always there to clean up their mistakes. Tonight, he’s facing a member of the Samoan dynasty, which seems to be an official name.

Lance Anoa’i vs. Shane McMahon

Lance is a real member of the Anoa’i Family. Hang on though as Drew pulls Lance to the floor and drives him into the barricade and steps. Shane says that’s enough and Lance is thrown inside so the real beating can begin, with the first match of the night starting at 8:52. The fans declare this awful as Lance makes the comeback and hits a dropkick but the superkick is countered by an elbow to the face. The triangle choke makes Lance tap at 1:36.

Post match Drew knocks Lance out again and the choke goes on again, with Shane saying Lance screams like Sika. This finally draws out Roman Reigns, who gets his hands on Shane until Drew gets him out of trouble. Shane and Drew run through the back as Reigns helps Lance up.

Here are Lesnar and Heyman again because the announcement didn’t come earlier. There’s a referee out there this time too because Heyman says it’s time to make his announcement. Before that can go anywhere, here’s Rollins to cut him off. Rollins says the title is his life as Lesnar laughs about the briefcase. Lesnar makes a mockery out of the title because he’s a joke. Seth stomped Lesnar at Wrestlemania and he can do it again right now.

This is Lesnar’s chance so Seth implores him to cash it in. Heyman reads the contract to the referee but Lesnar covers the mic after hearing that he has a year. Brock: “I GOT A YEAR???” And he slaps Heyman with the contract. Heyman: “DIDN’T YOU KNOW?” Lesnar: “NO!” Lesnar actually takes the mic and says screw Rollins before walking away. Lesnar hitting him with the contract was funny, making it the only entetaining thing on the show so far.

As Rollins leaves, Carmella and R-Truth run in with the 24/7 Title and it’s time for the rollups as the mob can’t get out of their own way. The running continues.

AJ Styles, who is too injured to be in the four way #1 contenders match, has been replaced by Baron Corbin. That’s not cool with AJ, who injured his back at Money in the Bank. He isn’t taking anything away from Seth Rollins who won the match fair and square but AJ wanted one more shot at the title. Corbin comes in and hits Styles in the face for a knockout.

Becky Lynch/Nikki Cross vs. IIconics

Non-title because the IIconics never defend the things. Nikki gets all fired up to fight both IIconics so Peyton headlocks her down. A rollup gives Nikki two and it’s off to Billie as a lot of shouting ensues. Nikki crossbodies both of them from the apron and we take a break. Back with Kay kicking Becky’s hand away from a tag and missing a charge at Nikki in the corner.

Peyton can’t stop the hot tag to Becky so house can be cleaned. Becky’s middle rope legdrop gets two with Kay making the save, setting up the bulldog onto Billie’s knee for two. Peyton gets out of the Disarm-Her so it’s a Rock Bottom (the Man Handle Slam) to give Becky the pin at 9:52.

Rating: C-. At this point I’ll take a match that gets cut in half over everything else we’ve been saying. The Women’s Tag Team Titles already need to be retired as they’ve become less interesting than the 24/7 Title in just a few months. At least Becky and Nikki didn’t take the fall, though I doubt this leads anywhere.

Post match Lacey Evans comes out for her old school cameo.

Back to the party with Naomi hugging Tamina when the Revival comes up to argue with the Usos. Naomi invited them to end this and there’s a tense handshake, with Naomi suggesting hot dogs.

Ricochet vs. Cesaro

Rematch from last week. Ricochet starts fast with a hurricanrana but a knee to the ribs cuts him off. An enziguri sends Cesaro tot he floor and it’s the big twisting flip dive to take us to a break. Back with Cesaro hitting a choke suplex for two, followed by a double stomp for two. Ricochet flips out of the corner and nails a superkick that seems to open Cesaro’s sinuses. A springboard clothesline into a standing shooting star press gets two but Cesaro uppercuts him on top.

Ricochet knees his way out of a superplex attempt though but the 630 misses. One heck of a running uppercut sends Ricochet bouncing out of the corner but the Neutralizer is countered. Cesaro sends him to the floor but makes the mistake of laying against the ropes, allowing Ricochet to flip forward from the floor to the apron into a hurricanrana driver (as in he basically got a running start and did a 450 from the floor into the ring) for the pin at 9:49.

Rating: C+. If I had a pen in my hand for that finish, I’d have thrown it in the air and been at a loss. That’s the kind of video game special move that some programmer comes up with because a normal human shouldn’t be able to do it. Ricochet is scary athletic and I’m glad he got to win a match for a change.

The Usos and the Revival play cornhole.

Miz talks about how he used to think he deserved to be Universal Champion but things have changed since then. Now he wants to earn it, and that’s going to be awesome.

Braun Strowman promises to give everyone these hands. Oh and congratulations to Miz for expecting another baby girl.

The Miz vs. Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Baron Corbin

Elimination rules and the winner gets Rollins at Super ShowDown. It’s a brawl to start with Lashley and Strowman quickly clearing the ring to set up their big staredown. Lashley leapfrogs him but gets caught by the throat. That’s powered away but Strowman gets the grip back on his throat, only to have Corbin make the save. Miz comes back in and kicks Lashley and Corbin down, only to miss the big one of course.

Corbin belly to back suplexes Miz for two but a superplex attempt is broken up. Naturally that sets up the Tower of Doom with Strowman powerbombing everyone down and getting a bunch of two counts. Everyone heads outside with Lashley breaking up Strowman’s running shoulder around the ring. Strowman gets suplexed onto the ramp and we take a break. Back with all four still in and Miz getting double teamed this time around. Lashley chokes on the rope but Miz fights back, only to get caught in Deep Six for two.

Strowman is back in and hits the running splashes to Corbin and Lashley and it’s time to go outside. Lashley dives onto Strowman to take him out and they fight into the crowd. Corbin comes back in but gets sunset flipped to give Miz two. Miz fires off the kicks but charges into the End of Days for the pin at 16:14….which gives Corbin the win and the title shot because Strowman and Lashley were eliminated when they went into the crowd? Sure why not.

Rating: D+. They bring this stuff on themselves. WWE went out of their way to announce that this was a four way match and then mentioned there were no countouts or disqualifications. Apparently there is however an out of bounds rule, which has just never been mentioned until now. All you have to do to avoid this is not make it elimination rules, but apparently that’s too much to ask. I don’t understand this, but I’m sure the answer is “what difference does it make”.

Scott Dawson cheats at cornhole but here’s R-Truth before anything else can happen. Rollups ensue and the mob chases him off.

It’s time for the Firefly Fun House with Bray holding up a paper plate mask. He finds it hard to be brave sometimes but when he hides behind the mask, everything is ok. Abby asks why Bray is a sicko but Bray insists that it’s not true. Is Bray a doctor now? A light bulb literally goes off about his head and Bray is now in a doctor’s outfit so he can diagnose Abby as a bully. Abby doesn’t want to be stuck in this limbo anymore….so Bray breaks out a limbo pole and spider walks underneath it while saying his catchphrase.

And now, here’s Sami Zayn to sit in an electric chair to answer questions from the audience. First up: when is your retirement date. Sami asks if the fan’s parents are related. A kid asks if Sami misses the Ginger Snaps from Mixed Match Challenge. Sami says the kid’s parents have failed at their jobs.

Third: how does it feel when Braun Strowman destroys you? Sami threatens to beat up the fan but since we’re in America, he won’t do it for fear of getting sued. Sami is amazed that the questions are this stupid and laughs off a question about not winning the Universal Championship. He could win the title any time he wants but he’s not interested in doing so right now. Sami: “You could have asked me about anything. You could have asked me about AEW.” As the fans gasp, here’s Seth Rollins again and let’s have an impromptu main event.

Seth Rollins vs. Sami Zayn

Non-title. They don’t waste time in getting to the floor with Rollins sending him into the barricade to take over. Back in and Rollins gets distracted for a second, allowing Sami to punch him in the face. A drop down onto Rollins’ back sets up the chinlock with forearms to Rollins’ jaw. Some rapid fire kicks to the face keep Rollins rocked and a clothesline gets two.

Rollins gets in a jumping knee to the back to send Sami outside but Sami posts him as we take a break. Back with Rollins escaping a suplex and nailing a superkick for a double knockdown. The Sling Blade connects and Sami bails to the floor, meaning it’s time for the suicide dives. Seth tweaks his knee on the second though and Sami goes after it, including a Figure Four.

Rollins turns it over for the break but the damage has been done. The knee is fine enough for an enziguri but the ripcord knee is countered into a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Sami’s superplex attempt is broken up and Seth tries the frog splash, which hits raised knees. Rollins pops back up and hits a quick Stomp but can’t follow up. A second stomp is good for the pin at 20:13.

Rating: B. That’s one of the better matches from both guys in a nice little while but after the show that came before it, it’s not like that means much. Rollins fighting through the injury was a good story and the action was the usual nice stuff, though it’s not like this is anything more than just another match for both of them.

Despite being shown to still be here, Lesnar does not appear again to end the show.

Overall Rating: T. People keep talking about how WWE is becoming more and more like WCW every single day and I can’t see that being the case. What I can see though is the company becoming more and more like TNA every day. TNA used to run these miserable shows with barely any wrestling for the first three quarters and then one good match to try and make up for it. That was the case here and the show was one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen.

This was far from the worst show WWE has ever run and it’s not even close to being in that discussion. There was some good action and storylines were advanced so it certainly accomplished things and had some moments, so it’s certainly out of the race for all time worst or even a complete waste of a show. The first hour was all time levels of bad but after that it got a lot better, bringing it all the way up to adequate.

What I saw tonight was WWE throwing out stuff and not caring if it made for a good show or not. We had more Shane, more Corbin, more Ziggler and two more bait and switches (Lesnar not making his decision and Corbin replacing AJ) while there was a big party in the back that only served as a backdrop for the 24/7 Title segment, followed by Sami sitting in an electric chair so he could take scripted questions from the audience.

We’re coming up on the second major event since Wrestlemania and it feels like they’re still stumbling around trying to figure out what to do next. After Super ShowDown, it’s Stomping Grounds, which isn’t likely to be anything more than a one or two match show either. It feels like they’re lost and can’t figure out what to do so they started running random stories and hoped people would keep watching.

Raw and Smackdown (to a lesser extent) just feel like a bunch of stuff that happens week to week with some unfocused bigger stories on top. Next Friday we get Reigns vs. Shane, Corbin vs. Rollins and Ziggler vs. Kingston in three of the main singles matches. So we have the boss’ son, a middle management goon and a guy who hasn’t wrestled in four months as the major villains. That’s really the best they can do for this show? Or for any show for that matter?

WWE needs to fix some of these things in a hurry. Maybe it’s time to go back to the very basics or restart things (AGAIN), but what they’re doing isn’t working. Pushing Shane and Corbin hasn’t exactly been inspiring and there isn’t much on either show worth seeing. It’s like they’re trying to go in too many directions without having a direction and it’s overwhelming them. I don’t know how to fix it, but something needs to change in a hurry.

Results

Shane McMahon b. Lance Anoa’i – Triangle choke

Becky Lynch/Nikki Cross b. IIconics – Man Handle Slam to Royce

Ricochet b. Cesaro – Hurricanrana driver

Baron Corbin b. The Miz, Bobby Lashley and Braun Strowman – End of Days to Miz

Seth Rollins b. Sami Zayn – Stomp

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: May 24, 2019
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

You knew this was coming at some point and there was no way around it. This week’s show is headlined by an ECW tribute match between Rob Van Dam and Tommy Dreamer. They’re both somewhat regulars around here, but I still can’t stand it when the promotion stops what they’re doing to praise a promotion that went out of business nearly twenty years ago. How many times have they done this over the years? Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap of last week’s pretty good show.

Opening sequence.

Sami Callihan vs. Fallah Bahh

Sami is on his own but Bahh has Scarlett Bordeaux. Callihan goes straight at him in the corner so Bahh is back with a clothesline and running splash. Some running clotheslines don’t do much to Bahh, who slams Callihan with little effort. Bahh’s spinning elbow gets two and the toe goes into Sami’s mouth.

That earns Bahh a bite and Callihan is knocked outside. They head outside with the spit chop having Bahh in even more trouble. A middle rope clothesline knocks Bahh down again and it’s back to the toe. Some shots to the head anger Bahh, but he gets taken right back down into a chinlock. Bahh fights up again and screams his name a lot, meaning it’s time for some chops and a belly to belly.

The Banzai Drop is loaded up too early and Sami knees him down for two. The Samoan drop (he likes drops) plants Sami to set up the Banzai Drop but here are the Crists for the save. Jake superkicks Dave by mistake so Scarlett takes Jake down, leaving Bahh to plant Sami. Bahh hits the suicide dive onto the Crists but a hanging Cactus Special finishes Bahh (with feet on the ropes) at 10:47.

Rating: C-. Not too bad here with a lot of stuff going on to make it a little better. Scarlett and Bahh’s Beauty and the Beast thing is an easy way to go, though Scarlett seems to be destined for something a lot bigger. Bahh has been putting in the effort recently though and has slimmed down a bit. I still see potential in OVE, but they never really break through to the other side for some reason.

Tommy Dreamer talks about wrestling Rob Van Dam in this building in 1996 (first match I can find for them there was in 1997). Then they headlined Madison Square Garden to unify the Hardcore and Intercontinental Titles (that match didn’t headline the show) and then Hardcore Justice (Dreamer and Van Dam were never involved in a match together, either working with or against each other, at any Hardcore Justice event, nor did Dreamer ever main event one of those shows). They’ll bring it against each other and make it extreme one more time. Or for the first time since he isn’t the most accurate narrator.

Johnny Impact has the red X from United We Stand that makes him #1 contender to the X-Division Title. He insults Michael Elgin, who is right behind him. Impact backpedals and suggests that they team up against Rich Swann and Willie Mack.

Knockouts Title: Madison Rayne vs. Taya Valkyrie

Taya is defending after losing to Madison in a series of non-title matches. Madison chases her outside and then back inside so the punching can begin. A middle rope crossbody gives Madison two and we take a break. Back with Madison getting two off a cutter to send Taya outside. Taya suckers her to the floor and gets in a kick to the leg to take over. With Don making some subtle references to Josh being Madison’s husband, Taya starts in on the leg. That means we stop for some posing before it’s off to the half crab.

The rope break gets Madison out of trouble so it’s the swinging Rock Bottom to take her down again. The limping Madison forearms back, only to walk into a spear. Madison is right back with her own half crab (which she used to win last time). Taya evens up the rope grabbing score and grabs the referee for a distraction, setting up the Road to Valhalla to retain the title at 14:07.

Rating: C. This was a good way to wrap up the story which didn’t overstay its welcome. Madison might not be the most interesting talent in the world but she’s more than capable of having a match like this. Taya winning when she had to makes her seem especially dangerous, though you can feel the showdown with Tessa coming from here, as should be the case.

Post match here’s Rosemary with the chained up Su Yung so Taya bails in a hurry.

The Deaners eat and talk about getting in shape. Their solution: beers and cheese steaks.

Rosemary and Yung run into James Mitchell, who isn’t happy with them. He wants Yung back but Rosemary tells him to go back and cower at his father’s boots. Rosemary wants the title now and Yung is going to die.

Flashback Moment Of The Week: Sami Callihan vs. Pentagon from last year’s Slammiversary.

Eddie Edwards talks about his highs and lows with Kenny by his side. Next week, he’s getting back at Killer Kross for breaking Kenny in half.

The Rascalz hate training and argue with each other so the smoke starts up again and everything is calm. We get a fresh training montage, which goes far better than last week.

The North vs. LAX

Non-title. Santana works on Alexander’s arm to start and it’s quickly off to Ortiz for a rollup. Page comes in and takes LAX’s rapid fire double teaming, setting up a suicide dive onto Alexander. Back in and Alexander takes Ortiz down for a top rope elbow from Page as the villains take over. A suplex out of the corner gives Alexander two and Page grabs the chinlock.

That’s broken up in short order and Santana comes in off the hot tag to clean house. A dropkick through the ropes sends Page up the ramp and it’s time for some kicks to Alexander’s head. Page comes back in for a knee to Santana’s head to give Alexander two of his own and a double Neutralizer is good for the same on Ortiz. LAX has had it though and their rapid fire kicks into the double belly to back faceplant finishes Alexander at 8:19.

Rating: C+. Nice match here, despite the North being one of the least interesting teams this side of the Desi Hit Squad. I know Don Callis is booking but is that really the best idea they have? They’re the tag team version of Petey Williams with the main sticking point of their characters being that they’re from Canada. At least the match was pretty good though, which does help a lot.

Here’s Glenn Gilbertti for a special exhibition. He hates women’s wrestling and wants to prove how worthless women are so here’s Ashley Vox to challenge him. Gilbertti asks which of the boys she’s dating because she must have been fired from Hooters.

Glenn Gilbertti vs. Ashley Vox

Gilbertti shoves her down to start and talks trash on the mic while sending her into the buckle and grabbing a hard headlock on the mat. Gilbertti: “I know this isn’t a five star match but it’s not my fault!” More trash talk lets Vox get in a rollup and some dropkicks so Gilbertti hits the Chartbuster. That’s good for two with Gilbertti pulling her up and shouting that Vox kicked out of his finish. Cue Tessa Blanchard to chase Gilbertti off for the no contest at about 3:30.

Rating: F. I get what they’re going for (it’s not exactly subtle) and Gilbertti is good at what he’s doing, but this feels like it’s out of 1984. This was going to be Eli Drake and that would have helped with the blowoff, because there is no reason to believe that this is going to end with anything other than Tessa beating him in ten seconds. They spent months building up Tessa for Gail Kim and this is the best they have for her? You can’t just have her slaughter some jobbers for a few weeks until she has something else to do? It’s not the worst, but it certainly feels like a bottom of the barrel storyline.

Rohit Raju vs. Petey Williams vs. Ace Austin vs. Dezmond Xavier

They start fast with Austin hitting a springboard spinning kick to Raju’s jaw. Petey’s slingshot Codebreaker staggers Austin and a running bulldog drops him onto Raju. Austin breaks up a very early Canadian Destroyer attempt and it’s time to cut Raju’s finger with the playing card. Dez comes in and fires off the strikes, plus a suicide dive onto Raju. Austin adds his own dive and kicks some people in the head. Petey comes back in with a Canadian Destroyer to Austin but Raju stomps on his back to break up one on Dez. The backflip kick to Raju’s head gives Dez the pin at 3:49.

Rating: C-. Was there really a need to not even give them four minutes? This was entertaining while it lasted but it felt like the first third of a fun match that never got the chance to get going. The X-Division could use some fresh blood and there are some viable challengers in here, with the Rascalz being great candidates along with Austin.

Next week: Impact/Elgin vs. Mack/Swann, Eddie Edwards vs. Killer Kross in a street fight and Gilbertti vs. Blanchard.

Tommy Dreamer vs. Rob Van Dam

They soak in the dueling chants and the ECDUB chants are back in full force. Feeling out process to start with Dreamer getting in a suplex of all things before stopping for a high five. Dreamer seems rather pleased and it’s even better as he trips Van Dam down for a headscissors. Rob flips up and we get another I RESPECT YOU TOO BUDDY staredown. Back up and Dreamer starts punching away until a kick to the face cuts him off. They head outside (you knew this was coming) with Dreamer throwing water in his eyes and then…going back inside because we’re not going full extreme here.

Rob grabs the chair instead and skateboards it into Dreamer’s face in the corner. Dreamer is right back by putting Rob in the Tree of Woe for the running dropkick (after the ECW chant of course). Rolling Thunder misses and Dreamer hits the DDT on the chair for two more. The fans want the table but settle for Rob’s spinning legdrop on the chair. Dreamer is right back up with the piledriver and a flipping sell from Rob. An elbow hits the chair and Rob is right back with a drop toehold into the chair ala Raven. The Five Star finishes Dreamer at 9:23.

Rating: D. It wasn’t terrible and they didn’t embarrass themselves, but is there a reason that these two are getting almost ten minutes and the X-Division guys, who are going to be here in a few years and could be stars of the future, are stuck cramming in everything they can into less than four minutes? Are Van Dam and Dreamer really the best this company can do for a draw to a TV taping? The guys were trying, but it just makes you realize that their heyday was twenty years ago. That’s the best you have?

Post match the North runs in to beat down Van Dam and Dreamer with Moose coming in to make it even worse. The lights go out and freaking Sabu is here with the chairs for the save. A Van Daminator lets the ECW guys pose to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. There are two big issues sticking out in this show and it hurts everything else. The booking goes from fine to “we’re really doing this?” far too often and that’s going to become an issue. It’s still a watchable show, but they seem to force these things in for the sake of some short term booking which could be used on much more valuable stuff. I don’t need to see Gilbertti, Van Dam and Dreamer (though he’s on every show anymore) in 2019, though Impact seems to think they’re the best options. What does that say about how they view their own talent?

Results

Sami Callihan b. Fallah Bahh – Hanging Cactus Special with feet on the ropes

Taya Valkyrie b. Madison Rayne – Road to Valhalla

LAX b. The North – Double belly to back faceplant to Alexander

Glenn Gilbertti vs. Ashley Vox went to a no contest when Tessa Blanchard interfered

Dez b. Rohit Raju, Petey Williams and Ace Austin – Backflip kick to Raju’s head

Rob Van Dam b. Tommy Dreamer – Five Star Frog Splash

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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

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

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Double or Nothing
Date: May 25, 2019
Location: MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Alex Marvez

It took long enough. This is the first show for All Elite Wrestling and the question is….egads there are a lot of them actually. The biggest of them all though is can they live up to the hype. All In certainly did, though that’s not exactly the same thing this time around. I don’t know if the show is going to be good (though it probably will be), but it’s going to be important. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Casino Battle Royal

Sonny Kiss, Brandon Cutler, Ace Romero, Glacier, Brian Pillman Jr., Sunny Daze, Maxwell Jacob Friedman, Joey Janela, Dustin Thomas, Billy Gunn, Jimmy Havoc, Michael Nakazawa, Jungle Boy, Isiah Kassidy, Marq Quen, Luchasaurus, Shawn Spears, Orange Cassidy

Those are all the announced entrants. This is a special kind of battle royal with five people starting and five more coming in every three minutes until we get to twenty. The final entrant, number 21 (the Joker, which is better than a Wild Card), gets to enter on his own. Nakazawa, Thomas, Friedman, Daze and Cutler (the clubs) start things off with Friedman stomping on Thomas in the corner. This is a true heel move because Thomas has no legs.

Friedman keeps up the yelling by stomping on Cutler, saying he is just a Young Bucks favor. Nakazawa busts out some baby oil (a trademark) and uses it to slip out of a waistlock from Daze. Cutler gets thrown over the top but isn’t all the way out, allowing him to springboard back in to take Friedman down. There are no eliminations yet and here are the Diamonds: Pillman, Kassidy, Janela, Havoc and Spears (Tye Dillinger) with Janela and Havoc beating Pillman up on the ramp.

Spears is the only one of the group to get in as Kassidy was beaten up on the floor as well. A poke to the eye drops Friedman and Spears hits the TEN pose. The clock speeds WAY up with the Hearts coming in next: Gunn, Jungle Boy, Glacier, Quen and Romero. Pillman, Janela, Kassidy and Havoc still aren’t in the ring. Friedman takes Gunn down and does the Karate Kid pose on Glacier. Daze knocks Glacier through the ropes (not an elimination) and then knocks Nakazawa out for the first elimination.

Janela is in with a cigarette as Glacier uses the mist to freeze Daze and get rid of him. Friedman dumps Glacier as Havoc puts the cigarette on Janela’s head. Pillman gets in to take Janela down and the spades are in: Luchasaurus, Marko Stunt, Sonny Kiss, Tommy Dreamer and….I’m assuming Cassidy, who wasn’t announced here. Dreamer gets knocked off the apron so Romero (weighing about 400lbs) dives onto him and Luchasaurus. Romero and Luchasaurus slug it out as Cassidy is on the floor.

Dreamer brings in the weapons and hits a bunch of people in the head with the trashcan lid. There’s a cutter to Havoc and a double chokeslam from Luchasaurus to Quen and Kassidy (the combined team of Private Party). The Joker is here….and it’s Adam Page, who limps to the ring. The fans are very pleased as he cleans house, including a fall away slam on Jungle Boy. Janela is waiting on him for an All In rematch and the fight is on. The Dead Eye (over the shoulder kneeling piledriver, formerly known as the Rite of Passage) plants Janela but there’s no elimination.

Page tries to pick Romero up but hurts his knee again. That means it’s Jungle Boy and Stunt going after Romero to no avail. Romero Pounces Stunt out onto Private Party for a heck of an elimination. Jungle Boy dropkicks Romero in the back and gets rid of him on his own for a heck of an upset. Thomas comes back up with the 619 to Janela (WHICH THE CAMERA MISSES), followed by a springboard 450. Friedman puts Thomas on top so Thomas can DDT Spears out.

A slingshot DDT is blocked though and Friedman gets rid of Thomas. Cutler dumps Gunn but gets eliminated by Friedman as the ring is starting to empty out. Luchasaurus chokeslams Janela through a well placed table for a great bump that makes Janela’s girlfriend Penelope Ford scream. Kiss does his weird Stink Face variation to Dreamer in the corner and gets tossed for him.

Cassidy comes in (billed as the twenty second man, even though he was announced in advance) for his slow motion kicks so Dreamer punches him down. Cassidy keeps his hands in his pockets and nips up, only to get thrown out anyway. Havoc’s staple gun between the legs gets rid of Dreamer, leaving us with Friedman, Page, Jungle Boy, Havoc and Luchasaurus, assuming there are no more hanging out on the floor.

Havoc sends Jungle Boy over the ropes and bites his fingers for the elimination. Friedman gets caught in the corner and triple stomped to send him through the ropes for a breather. Havoc’s Acid Rainmaker hits Luchasaurus and there’s a Death Valley Driver to Page. Another Acid Rainmaker is blocked and Luchasaurus kicks Havoc out. The fans are split as Luchasaurus shrugs off Page’s strikes to the face and hits the reverse powerbomb. Page low bridges him anyway for the elimination and the bell rings but Friedman comes back in….and takes the Buckshot Lariat to give Page the win at 23:55.

Rating: C+. Page was a bit of a letdown as the Joker but I can understand the idea of bringing in someone bigger for later on in the actual show. What we got here was good and a nice representation of how unique the roster can be. I had fun watching it and the match certainly didn’t feel like twenty four minutes, though the Joker winning was just kind of there after a parade of quick eliminations near the end.

Pre-Show: Kip Sabian vs. Sammy Guevara

Sabian is British and Guevara wears what looks like a panda skin to the ring. Sammy’s headlock doesn’t get very far as Kip takes him down into a headscissors for a nipup escape. Back up and Sammy starts flipping around to set up the dropkick, followed by another nipup. That’s enough for Guevara to take a bow but Sabian sends him to the floor for a kick to the face and a springboard flip dive.

Back in and Sammy hits a kick to the spine, followed by an Andrade double moonsault into a standing shooting star press for two. Sabian nails a springboard dropkick to the back, followed by a penalty kick to the chest for the same. Sammy suplexes him over the top and goes down with him, meaning it’s another suplex on the floor for a cool crash. Sammy drapes him over the barricade for a shooting star to the back and Sabian is in trouble. The 630 hits knees though and the Deathly Hallows (torture rack into a reverse Samoa driver) finishes Sammy at 9:41.

Rating: C. Sammy is a great heel but he didn’t get to showcase a lot of his usual stuff here, which is what makes him that much better. What we got was fine, though this was much better served in the pre-show. It’s the kind of a match that you can see on a bunch of indy shows and it was really nothing that I’ll remember in a few minutes. Still though, it’s probably a good idea to have a regular match instead of just the battle royal to get things going.

Some people from a charity called Kulture City sing the National Anthem.

The opening video looks at the rise of AEW, including the press conferences and media events, which are really all they have to go on at the moment. Well aside from Being The Elite.

So Cal Uncensored vs. Strong Hearts

The Strong Hearts (El Lindaman/T-Hawk/Cima) are from Oriental Wrestling Entertainment, a group out of China. Before the match, SCU does their usual spiel about this being the worst town they’ve ever been in, but it’s their favorite worst town. Of note: wrestlers now have ten seconds to get out of the ring as opposed to five in most promotions. Daniels and Cima start things off with a pair of missed dropkicks as the feeling out process begins. T-Hawk comes in to face Kazarian for a chop off.

Kazarian hits a dropkick of his own to possibly draw a little blood. The rather small Lindaman comes in to throw Sky around but a takedown lets SCU start with the revolving elbows. Excalibur talks about cutting off the ring at the hypotenuse, marking the debut of that word in wrestling. Daniels gets caught in the corner though and Cima drapes him over the ropes for a top rope double knee to the back.

T-Hawk chops Sky off the top as everything breaks down. SCU takes over again and it’s Lindaman getting caught in the wrong corner. Sky comes in for a running double stomp to the back but Lindaman manages a bridging German suplex for two. It’s back to Kazarian for two off a northern lights suplex on T-Hawk, leaving Daniels to suicide dive onto Cima. Back in and Cima plants Daniels but walks into a slingshot cutter from Sky.

Lindaman dropkicks Sky down but walks into Kazarian’s slingshot DDT. Daniels and Cima clothesline each other for a double knockdown. Back up and they slug it out with Daniels hitting Angel’s Wings but Lindaman comes in off a blind tag for a deadlift German suplex. Cima’s Meteora gives Lindaman two more and Kazarian hurricanrana T-Hawk to the floor, setting up Sky’s running flip dive. That leaves Lindaman inside to the Best Meltzer Ever for the pin at 13:08.

Rating: B. Heck of an entertaining match here with everyone moving and looking good. SCU is a heck of a team and they’re the kind of people you can put into a match anytime you need a good performance. Strong Hearts looked great as well and that’s a very bright sign for the future. You need some people you can just throw in there for some interchangeable matches and that might be what they’ve found here.

Allie joins commentary for the dreaded four person booth.

Nyla Rose vs. Kylie Rae vs. Britt Baker

Actually hang on as here’s Brandi Rhodes to make it a four way.

Nyla Rose vs. Kylie Rae vs. Britt Baker vs. Awesome Kong

Well that’s a wild card. Kong and Rose go straight for the staredown but all three go after Kong instead. That’s shrugged off and Kong hits the swinging backfist to send her to the floor. Kong misses the running splash on Baker and Rae though and gets low bridged out to the floor. The very smiley Rae runs Baker over but misses a low superkick, allowing Baker to grab a suplex for two, setting up a smile of her own.

Kong is back up though and Baker dives on her for no logical reason. That means a suicide dive from Rae to take both of them down as Rose is back up. Rose can’t chokeslam Rae, who tries some forearms to the back to no avail. Instead Rose plants her with a spinebuster for two with Britt coming back in for a Sling Blade. A Samoan drop takes Baker down but Rae is right back with a Code Red for two of her own on Rose.

Back up and Rose starts cleaning house before heading up top, which of course means the Tower of Doom from Kong. Kong takes Baker outside for the spinning backfist but Baker fights out of a powerbomb on the apron. Rose spears Kong into the steps, leaving Kylie to hit a low superkick on Baker.

That’s fine with Britt, who comes back with a swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker for a two that is so close that JR isn’t convinced. Rae is right back with a dead lift German suplex for two more and it’s time for Rae to get serious for the first time. Baker hits her in the face though and the Last Shot (Adam Cole’s old finisher) finishes Rae at 11:14.

Rating: C+. This felt like two matches going on at once with Kong and Rose having one match while Baker and Rae had the other. It was entertaining though and that’s the best thing that could happen. Baker and Rae aren’t very well known and having Baker win the match over Kong, who is a known name, is a good sign. Nice match too, though a singles match would have fit better.

Best Friends vs. Jack Evans/Angelico

Evans bounces off Trent to start and a bigger shoulder takes him down. It’s time to load up the big hug but Angelico and Evans break it up in a hurry. Evans starts cleaning house with JR declaring him “like a deadly…..wasp.” Everything breaks down with Evans elbowing Trent in the face.

The Friends get caught in the corner but a kick to the face sets up the Falcon Arrow with Excalibur getting in all of his usual shtick. A double stomp from the apron takes Angelico out so Evans starts his variety of odd kicks, including a backflip kick to Trent’s head. Soul Food sets up the big hug and it’s a reverse Razor’s Edge to send Evans into a cutter from Trent for two.

Angelico comes back in for an assisted Code Red on Trent, followed by an assisted cyclone knee to the head. Trent charges into a knee to the face in the corner and the Fall of the Angels (running crucifix buckle bomb) sets up Evans’ 630 for two with Chuckie breaking it up. Chuckie hits the running flip dive onto Angelico and the spike Strong Zero finishes Evans at 12:16.

Rating: B-. I’m not a big Best Friends fan but they went with the serious stuff here to make it work that much better. Evans and Angelico have a spot going forward as well as the spot fest guys and there’s nothing wrong with that. Best Friends winning makes sense though as the company is looking to be based on tag teams and having a bigger name team is the right call.

Post match they load up a hug….and the lights go out. They come back up with a bald guy and a masked guy in the ring. The lights go out again and it’s…..a bunch of masked men around the ring to pull Angelico, Evans and the Best Friends to the floor for a beating. The fans don’t recognize the bald guy and the masked guy as they destroy the four of them. The team is better known as the Super Smash Bros, though they’re not named here.

All Out is coming to Chicago in August. They do have some decent pay per view names.

Aja Kong/Yuka Sakazaki/Emi Sakura vs. Hikaru Shida/Riho Abe/Ryo Mizunami

Kong is a legendary monster. Shida and Sakazaki start things off for a missed running knee to the face, meaning it’s off to Mizunami vs. Kong. A power battle easily goes to the much larger Kong until some kicks to the head work a bit better. Sakazaki comes back in for a top rope seated senton on Riho and a slam, followed by the tag off to Sakura. The surfboard goes on for a bit before it’s back to Kong for the loud kick to the back.

Kong’s partners hold the other two in the corner as Kong hits a piledriver for two, with a pair of diving saves breaking it up. Riho is mostly dead but a shot to the ribs allows the hot tag off to Ryo. Everything breaks down for the big brawl until it’s Kong vs. Mizunami. The power game goes nowhere so it’s off to Riho as everything breaks down.

Knee strikes abound and it’s Kong suplexing Riho and Ryo (They couldn’t call one of them Earl?). A suicide dive takes both of them down and it’s a brainbuster to Shida. Sakura adds a moonsault for two that is so close that the bell rings and music starts playing. The fans aren’t pleased with the kickout but settle for Shida hitting a running knee to Sakura’s head for the pin at 13:09.

Rating: B-. It was a pretty wild brawl with a lot of physicality, but it was one of those cases where the people involved felt like they were interchangeable outside of Kong. The match was good and that’s all you can ask for and the majority of the match is all about having these people featured. That worked quite well and as long as you get a taste, everything should be fine.

We recap Dustin Rhodes vs. Cody. They’re brothers who don’t get along and it’s a personal feud this time. Dustin is much older and Cody wants to take him out for good. Dustin isn’t ready to be put out to pasture/taken out behind the barn/whatever other Texas saying they can think of.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Cody

Cody has a flashy robe and discount HHH throne, plus Brandi in his corner for a rather nice bonus. In case you didn’t get the idea from the cross and skull throne, Brandi hands him a sledgehammer to destroy the throne. ARE THEY BEING TOO SUBTLE FOR YOU??? Dustin has half of his face painted because, again, he isn’t much without the links to Goldust. Cody’s weight belt says Attitude Killer because we need to get that in there too.

We get a DUSTY chant for a nice touch (Dustin looks near tears) and the fans declare this awesome. Did they see their WWE matches? Cody trips him down and throws in a cartwheel for the early pose. Dustin gets sent outside for a suicide dive and it’s a bit of a botch as Dustin isn’t ready for something like a 619 on the apron. A running flip dive off the apron drops Cody and the bulldog connects back inside.

Ten right hands in the corner set up some snap jabs and Cody bails again. Fans: “NEVER LOST IT!” Cody grabs some water and Brandi gets in a cheap shot so Cody can hit a fireman’s carry gutbuster for two. A powerslam gives Cody two but Dustin hits his kneeling uppercut. Dustin loads up Shattered Dreams but Cody pulls the buckle pad off and throws it at Dustin, who charges anyway. That earns him a drop toehold into the exposed buckle for a trip to the floor.

Brandi adds a spear, with JR wondering what kind of family this is. That earns Brandi an ejection and Diamond Dallas Page makes a cameo to help get rid of her. Dustin is busted WAY open so Cody rubs the blood on his own chest. Cody punches at the cut and Dustin can’t see through the blood. A curb stomp gives Cody two and he adds a top rope ax handle. The scoop powerslam gives Dustin (who is now reaching an all time amount of blood) two but Cody takes him down into the Figure Four.

That’s powered over until Cody lets it go, so it’s time for a whipping with the weightlifting belt. Dustin grabs a Code Red (third time tonight) for two and the fans are on their feet. The top rope superplex is a near crash as Dustin slips off the top but he’s fine enough to hit Cross Rhodes for two. A low blow gets Cody out of trouble and the Disaster Kick sets up the real Cross Rhodes…..for two.

There is blood EVERYWHERE, with Earl and Cody both having it all over them and the mat is covered. Dustin hits another Cross Rhodes for another two and it’s time to trade kneeling uppercuts. Cody grabs something like a Vertebreaker (more like a backbreaker though as Cody was sitting before Dustin’s head started going down) but pulls Dustin up at two. Cross Rhodes finishes Dustin at 22:28.

Rating: B+. I had no expectations for this one and while I’m still not sure exactly why they’re fighting (I get the story but I’m not buying it), this was a heck of a war and far better than most people would have guessed. They beat each other up and had the best match they could have, which was also the best match tonight.

Post match Cody gets back in the ring and says Dustin doesn’t want to do this just yet. Instead, Cody has an upcoming match against the Young Bucks with a partner of his choosing. He doesn’t need a partner or a friend though because he needs his older brother. That gets a big hug in a scene reminiscent of Dusty Rhodes saying something similar to Dustin back in 1994 (that’s not a bad thing).

We look at the battle royal again as things are set up for the title presentation.

Here’s BRET HART of all people to put over the event and talk about how important the title is. He brings out Hangman Page, who will be facing either Kenny Omega or Chris Jericho “Next month…..or in a few months. Sorry it’s been a little while.” Page comes out but here’s Maxwell Jacob Friedman to interrupt. He does his usual…..Friedman: “BRET LOOK OUT! A FAN!”

After Friedman is done laughing, he talks about how he’s going to be the future of this company because a horse like Page certainly can’t be its face. Friedman talks about taking horses out back and shooting them before telling Page to give him the title shot. He demands that the old man look at him because he’s going to be the best there is, was and ever will be. Actually scratch that because that catchphrase sucks.

Page comes after him so Friedman drops to the floor. Friedman: “Easy Seabiscuit, easy.” Cue Jungle Boy to stop Friedman on the ramp and Jimmy Havoc to cut him off again. Page, Jungle Boy and Havoc surround Friedman, who wants to talk about this. The beatdown is on as Bret unveils the title, which is rather large with AEW in the middle. Not bad at all, with a pretty simple design.

We recap the Young Bucks vs. the Lucha Bros. The Bucks showed up in AAA and won the titles from the Brothers, who had won them earlier in the night. This is the only title match all night and it’s an actual dream match….which has happened before.

AAA Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Lucha Bros

The Bucks are defending and come out in Elvis style jumpsuits. Matt and Pentagon start things off with a staredown and Matt breaks up CERO MIEDO. An early Pentagon Driver attempt is broken up so it’s already off to Fenix. Nick comes in off a blind tag but the Bucks get caught in a double wristdrag to the floor. Everyone winds up outside and it’s Fenix and Nick both trying dropkicks at the same time for a standoff.

Back in and it’s a chop off with Fenix getting the better of Nick. The rolling dropkick puts Nick down again and the double superkicks make it even worse. The assisted wheelbarrow splash gives Fenix two but Nick is back up with a springboard wristdrag/headscissor takeover combination. Matt comes in to pick up the pace and it’s a gorilla press to Fenix, followed by a spear to Pentagon. Nick’s top rope double stomp hits Matt’s back by mistake but Nick takes Pentagon down to keep control.

Pentagon is right back with a monkey flip to send Nick into Matt in the corner. Fenix comes in and plants Matt on his head for two. It’s already back to Pentagon, who gets caught in a top rope flipping Stunner (nearly a neckbreaker) from Matt. Rolling northern lights suplexes set up a Sharpshooter but Fenix makes a quick save. Nick comes back in and it’s time for the rapid fire offense, including a kick to Fenix and a slingshot X Factor to Pentagon. Back in and the Bucks grab stereo Sharpshooters but ropes are grabbed in a hurry.

Nick hits the top rope 450 to a draped Fenix with Pentagon making the save. A powerbomb/super Sliced Bread #2 gets two on Fenix and we need a breather. Pentagon comes back in to start firing off the superkicks and everyone is down. Matt and Pentagon head to the floor to trade kicks to the legs. Kicks to the face give us a double knockdown but it’s the Bros up with back to back slingshot Canadian Destroyers for two on Nick.

Fenix’s middle rope flip dive takes out both Bucks, followed by the Fear Factor into the Swanton for two on Nick. It’s back to Matt and the Bucks superkick Fenix out of the air. A Helluva Kick into a brainbuster onto the buckle gives us the Sami Generico special on Fenix. More Bang For Your Buck gets two on Pentagon, followed by a spike package piledriver for two more.

Fenix breaks up the Meltzer Driver though and Pentagon snaps Matt’s arm. The Pentagon Driver gets two on Matt as Nick is down near the top of the ramp. That leaves Fenix to start kicking Matt in the arm but in true Bucks fashion, Matt is suddenly fine and Nick is suddenly back, meaning it’s the Meltzer Driver to retain at 24:59.

Rating: A-. This was the best match of the night, even if it had that rather annoying Bucks tendency to get destroyed and then pop up and win in about two seconds. I liked the idea of the Bucks using moves from their past rivals to to make sure they could beat the Bros, though I’m not sure who is supposed to beat the Bucks now. Either way, it’s a heck of a match, though both teams are capable of doing better.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Kenny Omega. Jericho needs to win the match to avenge his loss in Japan. Omega knows that Jericho might be the best of all time but also that Jericho needs this win.

Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho brings out the List of Jericho, the light up jacket and….finally the hat because he’s Evil Jericho this time around. They trade slaps in the face to start with Jericho hitting a running shoulder. The early V Trigger misses so Omega tries a hurricanrana, which is countered into the Walls. Omega bails to the rope and gets knocked outside where Jericho rings the bell. This time Jericho throws him into the crowd and grabs a camera for some filming (with Excalibur calling him Generico twice in a row).

That earns him a soda to the face and they go back inside for a Regal Roll into the middle rope moonsault from Omega. Jericho is right back with a dropkick and some chops to bust Omega’s chest open. For some reason Jericho stops to flip off a fan and throw in some yelling, allowing Omega (who might have a broken nose) to snap off a hurricanrana. Jericho goes outside and finds a table, which Omega dropkicks into his face. Omega isn’t done though as he hits a big running flip dive to knock the table into Jericho again.

The table is set up on the floor but Omega takes him back inside for the jumping Fameasser for two. Omega hits the first V Trigger to the back of the head, followed by the belly to back superplex for the huge crash. Another V Trigger is broken up but the Lionsault hits knees. Now the second V Trigger can connect and Jericho adds a release German suplex. The second and third Lionsaults connect (the second to Kenny’s head) for two but Omega is right back with another V Trigger.

Jericho backdrops him to the floor through the table though and they’re both down. They slug it out with Omega on the apron so Jericho breaks up a springboard with a dropkick. Omega breaks up a superplex but dives right into the Codebreaker for two. The Walls are broken up again and a tiger driver gives Omega another near fall. Another V Trigger is countered into the Walls with Jericho even turning it into the Liontamer.

Omega slips out again and hits one heck of a V Trigger (that’s about seven total) but the One Winged Angel is countered into the deformed cousin of a DDT. It was so bad that they do the same sequence again so the DDT can work as designed. The Codebreaker drops Omega for no cover and it’s the Judas Effect (a spinning back elbow to the face) to give Jericho the pin at 27:37.

Rating: B+. It’s a strong main event and I completely understand the idea of putting Jericho on top but it never felt epic. It came off like they were just trading big finishers until we got to the ending. Jericho winning is fine as you can either have him as the first champion or have him put Page over for the title, both of which would work. Still though, rather good, just not great.

Post match Jericho rips on the fans, saying he doesn’t care what they think and calling them marks. It’s his time now though and this is his company. This company is all about him and he’s the reason for this building, the logo and the TV deal. With all that done and Omega defeated, it’s time for a thank you.

Instead, he gets Jon Moxley coming through the crowd to hit Dirty Deeds on Jericho and the referee but Omega fights one off and the brawl is on, all but guaranteeing the next main event. They fight into the crowd and onto the poker chip set, with Moxley hitting Dirty Deeds on top of the pile. An AA off the pile of chips plants Omega to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. It was very good and that’s what matters most here. They had some rather good matches (the last three all delivered) and while it felt a little long near the end, I liked just about everything they put on. It wasn’t a blow away show or an instant classic, but what we got was very good and I’m curious to see where they go with the next show.

The important thing to remember is that this is a first step. Most of the matches didn’t have much of a backstory and they didn’t need to. This show was much more about letting these people get in the ring under the AEW banner and there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s a very good debut and while I liked All In more, this is a good way to go for the first step on a long road.

So what does this mean for their long term future? Not much really, as they’re still several months away from having their weekly show, which is what really matters. They’re not going to have the Rhodes blood bath or the crazy Bucks vs. Bros match or a Jon Moxley coming through the crowd every single time. What matters is getting people to watch when that hype is gone and while this doesn’t show much about that ability (as it’s something completely different), it showed that they can put on a very good and entertaining show.

Another good sign was Jim Ross, who sounded motivated and energized for the first time in a long time. His New Japan run just made me sad as he clearly didn’t care and wasn’t trying, but he can still bring it when he needs to. Let him be a guiding light behind the scenes and things will be great. This show wasn’t quite great, but it was a very strong start and that’s a nice sign.

Results

So Cal Uncensored b. Strong Hearts – Best Meltzer Ever to Lindaman

Britt Baker b. Kylie Rae, Nyla Rose and Awesome Kong – Last Shot to Rae

Best Friends b. Jack Evans/Angelico – Spike Strong Zero to Evans

Hikaru Shida/Riho Abe/Ryo Mizunami b. Aja Kong/Yuka Sakazaki/Emi Sakura – Running knee to Sakura

Cody b. Dustin Rhodes – Cross Rhodes

Young Bucks b. Lucha Bros – Meltzer Driver to Pentagon

Chris Jericho b. Kenny Omega – Judas Effect

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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: December 23, 2004
Location: Camp Speicher, Tikrit, Iraq
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It worked the first time so let’s do it again. This is the second annual Tribute to the Troops and since this is in the earlier years, it means they’re actually going to put in a little more effort. The show is outside in Iraq, meaning it’s going to be a bit warm. We even have a big match announced this time around with Undertaker vs. Heidenreich. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s Vince McMahon to get things going. Vince talks about how the wrestlers have volunteered to come back for the volunteer military because they want to say thank you. They’ve come over here to boost the military’s spirit but it’s been the opposite because the soldiers are that inspiring.

Back home all you hear are all the negatives from Iraq and all the progress they’ve made around here. When he gets back to America, he’ll be telling some of those negative media personalities where they can go. For now though, on with the show, including Lilian Garcia as the attractive Mrs. Claus style ring announcer. Vince: “TEN HUT! I’ve always wanted to say that.”

Lilian sings the National Anthem, which she knocks out of the park as always.

Video on the roster arriving.

Rene Dupree vs. Booker T.

Expect to see a lot of America vs. foreigner matches tonight. The announcers are all over Dupree with the anti-French jokes because if you disagree with anything the military does, you’re a horrible stupid person. Feeling out process to start as the announcers list off a bunch of military personnel who made this possible.

Booker hits some hiptosses and a clothesline to take over as the fans are very into the raise the roof pose. I mean, that’s a few years old but points for trying at least. Dupree avoids a charge in the corner and drops an elbow setting up the French Tickler (Tazz: “IN IRAQ???”). The chinlock goes on for a few seconds with Booker popping up and hitting the flapjack. A Spinarooni into the ax kick gives Booker the pin.

Rating: D+. These matches are going to be on a sliding scale here as there is no point to suggest that the wrestling is what matters. Having the American beat the foreigner is as old hat as you can get on a show like this and that’s perfectly fine. Booker is someone who can fire up a crowd so this was a good choice for the opener.

A solider talks about getting to go home to see her husband.

Wrestlers meet troops and think Iraq isn’t as bad as it seems. They were even under fire at one point and we see a piece of a mortar that hit them. That’s enough to make them honorary Steel Tigers and they get a coin.

Here’s Santa Claus, who seems to be looking a little hardcore legendish this year. It might not be Christmas yet but he’s making a special trip here. As luck would have it, he brings out some WWE Divas to help him. That would be Torrie Wilson, Dawn Marie and Jackie Gayda, who seem to be rather popular. Lilian joins them in the ring and they throw out presents to the crowd.

They include in some hugs as a bonus but Santa invites them back inside. He has a gift for all of them in the bag, which of course would be lingerie. Well actually Dawn gets a half empty bottle of Gatorade. Santa: “Santa developed quite a thirst and felt the need to quench it.” The catfight is on and Dawn is sent outside. Torrie thinks something is up and realizes that Santa is in fact Mick Foley. The voice, the hunched walk, the being 6’4 and BEING SANTA CLAUS didn’t give that away?

We see a soldier reenlisting.

A soldier misses her family.

Undertaker vs. Heidenreich

No Heyman here with Heidenreich and no hat/coat/slowness for Undertaker. The smoke does come up though, which is kind of a weird visual without everything else. Undertaker slugs away to start and takes over without too much trouble. Could it be because he’s facing Heidenreich? Old School into a reverse DDT gives Undertaker two and it’s already time for a breather. A slugout on the floor goes to Undertaker and there’s the apron legdrop.

Back in and Snake Eyes connects but the big boot is countered with a swinging Boss Man Slam to give Heidenreich his own two. Heidenreich hammers away so Undertaker does the same, followed by the jumping clothesline for two more. Now Snake Eyes into the big boot connects and it’s a legdrop to make things even worse for Heidenreich. The soldiers want a Tombstone but settle for a broken up chokeslam so Heidenreich can bail to the floor and take the countout.

Rating: D. Good grief how is this feud continuing??? Does WWE really think that much of Heidenreich that they need to keep going with him here? His matches are terrible and his promos are far from anything special, but we get to see these two fight AGAIN because WWE can’t just let something go.

A soldier misses his newborn son. He gets to come home n Christmas Day though, which is a surprise to his wife.

Wrestlers talk about how awesome the trip has been.

More clips of the wrestlers doing military stuff. There isn’t much to say on these things as they’re just meeting troops and shots of events and equipment. The wrestlers want to come back.

Booker T. and some soldiers wish us a five time Merry Christmas.

Before the show, a General thanked the troops.

The same General thanked the wrestlers and gave them a special coin. Seeing Undertaker in street clothes is still bizarre.

Hardcore Holly vs. Kenzo Suzuki

I can’t complain about the repetitive formula here. Suzuki is wrestling barefoot here and hits an early hiptoss. Holly isn’t having that and chops Suzuki in the corner until a hot shot puts Holly in trouble. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Holly fights up and hits the dropkick. Holly’s top rope clothesline sets up the Alabama Slam for the fast pin.

Another soldier says hi and misses his family.

Video on the arena being set up. Some of the soldiers got to mess around in the ring for a bonus.

Here’s JBL in the Hummer, now with longhorns. JBL however is in a hazmat suit because….well because he’s a hard guy to figure out. After popping up the mask on the suit, he complains about the conditions here, including saying that the food has no exit strategy and the toilet paper is rather abrasive. JBL talks about how good things happens when he comes over here but he’s getting tired of bringing the good luck. Oh and where is the booze? We could call this place Rehabistan.

He’s happy to be our American hero and knows the fans want to chant his name. This time though, just whisper it so the enemy doesn’t know where they are. JBL leaves, promising to see us when the next war starts somewhere else. Cue Big Show to say he doesn’t like JBL making this all about himself. Show makes fun of the suit and knocks JBL to the floor with a right hand. As usual, when JBL is being over the top and goofy, he’s all kinds of fun.

Video on last year’s Tribute to the Troops and the thought process in setting this up.

Wrestlers, troops, troops, wrestlers.

Kurt Angle/Luther Reigns vs. Eddie Guerrero/Rey Mysterio

Call me crazy, but having Kurt Angle, the American hero, as the face might not work on this show. Angle tries to explain why he doesn’t such but Eddie cuts him off. Eddie and Rey drive out in a Hummer, with Tazz thinking Eddie stole it. Rey even has a camouflage mask. Rey and Angle start things off with Kurt easily taking him down and working on the arm. An armdrag into an armbar keeps Rey down for a bit and it’s Reigns coming in for a backbreaker.

Angle’s snap suplex gets two and Reigns hits another backbreaker for two of his own. Rey finally spins out and hits a tornado DDT to drop Reigns, setting up the hot tag to Eddie. The rope walk headscissors/wristdrag take the villains down but Angle reverses Three Amigos into the ankle lock. That’s broken up in a hurry but Reigns breaks up the 619. Eddie takes Angle down and now the 619 hits Reigns. The frog splash gets two with Angle making the save so Eddie sends him outside. Rey Drops The Dime to finish Reigns.

Rating: C+. Not a bad main event here with the three best guys doing everything they could and Reigns getting in his stuff at the right times. Much like the rest of the show, the wrestling wasn’t the point here but at least we got a good match out of it. That’s pretty impressive when they only had six minutes.

One more video of the wrestlers with the troops wraps us up.

Overall Rating: C+. I’m not sure what to say on this one. The whole point was about making the troops feel important with some wrestling included. They did that to the letter but the wrestling was just there for the most part. To be fair though, that’s exactly what you knew was coming. It’s exactly what it’s supposed to be and while it might not mean much, it was a cool thing to do and the show flew by.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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: January 25, 2001
Location: Mobile Civic Center, Mobile, Alabama
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

This is the first of two shows that someone asked me to review in a row and since I’ve gone nuts covering stuff in advance this week, I might as well get to the first of them. We’re just past the Royal Rumble and coming up on No Way Out, meaning Wrestlemania is just around the corner. Things are getting awesome again and hopefully that’s the case here. Let’s get to it.

We open with a look back at last week, where Steve Austin cost HHH the WWF Title. HHH was ready to blast Austin with the sledgehammer but WWF Champion Kurt Angle came out to say he cost HHH the title. A fight was teased with Angle calling him monkey boy. Trish Stratus came out and challenged Stephanie McMahon for a bonus. After some, ahem, convincing from Trish, Vince agreed to make a mixed tag. Stephanie and Trish beat each other up until HHH Pedigreed Trish to give Stephanie the pin. Austin came out and beat up HHH to end the show. And now you’re caught up on the main event, which you never get today.

Opening sequence.

Undertaker vs. Rikishi

Ah the days of main event heel Rikishi. The brawl starts on the floor with Undertaker sending Rikishi head first into the steps but stopping to glare at the referee. They get in for the first time with a running clothesline in the corner rocking Rikishi again. Old School connects but Rikishi runs him over and drops a big leg. Undertaker is right back up with the jumping clothesline for two of his own before it’s back to the right hands. There’s the running DDT but Haku (Rikishi’s partner) comes in for the DQ.

Post match the beatdown is on with a double headbutt dropping Undertaker. Rikishi sits on his chest but here’s Kane for the save. Undertaker isn’t sure what to think of Kane before raising his hand.

A ticked off Vince arrives in the limo and yells at the driver for making him 20 minutes later. That’s early around here. Vince fires the driver anyway.

Here’s Vince in the arena to blow off some steam. Notice something here: we’re about 20 minutes into the show and we’ve had a long recap (longer than necessary but fine) and a match. We didn’t spent fifteen minutes settling into the show and kill the buzz right off the bat. Why is that so complicated? Anyway Vince complains about the driver again and says that believe it or not, there is intelligent life here in Mobile.

Now it’s time to complain about the dental situation but Vince stops to listen to the fans booing. With that out of the way, Vince talks about the mixed tag from Monday and isn’t happy about Angle manhandling Stephanie. Then to make it worse, Trish was driven CHEST FIRST into the mat by a Pedigree, all followed by Austin interfering again. To make sure that doesn’t happen again, Austin and HHH have the night off. Instead they’ll face off at No Way Out with the contract signing taking place on Monday.

As for tonight though, Angle needs to get out here RIGHT NOW. Angle comes out and talks about how much he respects him and even throws in a salute. We get an official apology for what happened to Stephanie and Trish but that’s not good enough. That’s why tonight, Angle is defending against Kane. And they’re out without some big explanation. Keep this stuff moving.

Jeff Hardy/Bradshaw vs. Matt Hardy/Faarooq

Well ok then. This is fallout from the Hardys brawling in the Rumble so they start against each other here. Jeff punches him to the floor but misses a dive as Lita and Jacqueline are watching in the back. Back in and Jeff jumps over Matt in the corner and dropkicks him in the back to take over. Jeff gets shoved off the top to set up the screaming legdrop and there go the shirts. The jawbreaker takes Matt down so it’s off to Bradshaw who gets two off a slam….with Faarooq making the save.

Now it’s the battle of the APA (King: “We’re about to experience Bar Wars!”) with Faarooq nailing the powerslam. They fight to the floor and Bradshaw gets sent into the steps. The ref has to take a chair away from Faarooq so it’s a spinebuster to drop Bradshaw instead. There’s no cover though, allowing Bradshaw to hit the Clothesline for a double knockdown. Jeff tags himself in and the Hardys double team Faarooq, with Matt hitting the Twist of Fate into the Swanton for the pin. King: “Are the Hardys drunk?”

Rating: D. Well that’s a thing that happened and actually it made me want to see the APA have a one off hoss fight. It’s likely to be more entertaining than the various Hardys matches over the years. The ending at least made sense as the Hardys are going to be more about each other than themselves so everything is fine. Well not the match but everything else.

Tough Enough video auditions in the days before digital cameras. Included: Justin Roberts.

Vince is on the phone with someone (presumably Trish) and tells her to just stay in bed and get better. Linda’s doctor calls in and Vince tells him to double her medication. Vince sees HHH arrive and gets off the phone.

Post break Vince wants to know why HHH is here. HHH thinks Austin will be here because things happen. Like what happened to a certain lady on Raw. HHH wants to know which lady Vince is more worried about. Vince throws him out.

We look at the still incredible Chris Benoit vs. Chris Jericho ladder match from the Rumble.

Here’s the Rock to do commentary on the next match.

Intercontinental Title: Chris Jericho vs. Big Show

Jericho is defending while being very banged up after winning the title on Sunday. It’s weird seeing Show slim after his stint in OVW where he lost a ton of weight. Jericho charges in to start and is gorilla pressed onto his face for a crash. Show goes after him and gets his throat snapped across the top rope to give Jericho an opening.

A ribs first ram into the post keeps Jericho down as the fans chant for Rock. The bearhug goes on (well duh) for a bit until Jericho slips out and goes for the knee in a smart move. A Walls attempt is easily blocked by a hand around the throat and the Final Cut (Eye of the Hurricane)….draws in Chris Benoit to go after Show for the DQ.

Rating: D+. This didn’t have time to go anywhere and Jericho couldn’t do much against someone that big. What we got wasn’t too bad though and they could have done something better with the right amount of time. That being said, Jericho wasn’t about to lose the title so soon after winning it in such a great match just a few days earlier.

Post match Show gets rid of Benoit and goes after Rock, who hits him in the head with the title. Jericho’s forearm off the apron sets up the Rock Bottom on the floor to leave Show laying.

Austin is here. I’m shocked too.

HHH looks around the room where Austin just was but no one has seen him. Threats ensue.

K-Kwik vs. Tazz

That would be R-Truth, who is basically the same person he would be about eighteen years later (minus the insanity). Kwik starts fast (quickly you might say) and kicks Tazz in the face, followed by a missile dropkick for two. Tazz is right back with a t-bone Tazplex for two of his own, followed by a hard clothesline. Some slaps (called punches) have Tazz in trouble and there’s a powerslam, but here’s Kaientai for the overdubbed voices (those still make me laugh). They’re impressed by Kwik’s funky hair and the distraction lets Tazz grab the Tazmission for the win.

Post match Kaientai admits that they distracted Kwik on purpose, due to reasons of EVIL.

We look at Drew Carey’s time at and in the Royal Rumble. Still one of the best celebrity cameos ever.

Austin is outside drinking beer.

Post break HHH goes to find him but there’s no Austin. The beer cans are still there though.

European Title: Test vs. Christian

Test is defending. Before the match, Christian says Edge is out with a stomach ache after eating the food here in Mobile (which he pronounces incorrectly). Since Alabama is stupid, Christian gives us a quiz: Test is either A, a Reekazoid, B, has more teeth than everyone in this city or C, is about to become the shortest reigning European Champion of all time. It’s D, all of the above (it always is).

Christian jumps him at the bell and bumps the referee, allowing him to miss a belt shot. Test gets in a shot to put him on the floor and there’s the full nelson slam but the ref is still down. Now the belt shot can connect for a slow two and frustration is upon up. Test’s always cool looking tilt-a-whirl slam sets up a faceplant for two more as they’re certainly moving out there. The pumphandle powerslam is broken up so Christian heads up, only to get backdropped down. Test’s big boot retains the title.

Rating: C. This was another short one (more on that later) but rather entertaining as I really liked Test at this point. He had the look, the power game and the athleticism to make himself something entertaining but after last year, there wasn’t anything else for him to do. This was as good as he was going to get and that’s not the worst place to be.

HHH sees Austin having a beer with Kaientai. Since there is no Austin after the break, HHH beats both of them up. Since they’re EVIL, does that make HHH a hero?

We look at Chyna injuring her neck in a match against Ivory at the Royal Rumble. That earned her a stretcher job and a ride in an ambulance. She currently has bone fragments in her neck, which have to be removed.

Hollys vs. Right To Censor

That would be the same Right To Censor (Goodfather/Bull Buchanan for the team here) who were very pleased with what happened to Chyna. The hometown Hollys have Molly with them to counter Steven Richards and Ivory. Crash gets taken into the wrong corner to start and the beating is on in a hurry. A powerslam takes him down again and Buchanan does his awesome rope walk clothesline (unfortunately that was the only thing he could do).

Some forearms are cut off by Goodfather’s elbow as King worries about Angle facing Kane tonight. The Ho train misses and it’s off to Hardcore for the house cleaning. The hanging kick between the legs (to the stomach of course) keeps Buchanan in trouble and Richards gets taken down. Buchanan is right back with a DDT on Hardcore but Ivory’s Women’s Title hits Buchanan by mistake, allowing Hardcore to get in the dropkick for the pin.

Rating: C-. See, now why is that so much to ask? The hometown guys get a win to make the fans happy and it’s a protected loss for the RTC as they have something going on. This is the kind of thing that can be done without ticking the fans off and it’s not like anyone outside of the live audience is going to remember this in a week.

HHH has been ordered to Vince’s office.

We recap the night, which seems a bit like filler.

HHH comes up to Vince, who didn’t send for him. They figure out that Austin is waiting in the office so Vince keeps talking as HHH looks behind those see thru screens that serve no purpose. Now given that they are see thru, Austin would be able to see HHH motioning for Vince to keep talking, but that’s beside the point, mainly because Austin followed them in. HHH accidentally hits Vince with a metal tray and Austin beats both of them up.

And now, here’s the same thing again.

WWF Title: Kurt Angle vs. Kane

Kane is challenging and Angle is scared to death. Before the match, Angle calls Kane out for his short title reign back in 1998. If Kane thinks he’s winning it back, his brain is more burned than his face. Angle insists that it is NOT a knock against burn victims, because he has a lot of fans who are burn victims! Angle’s belt shot misses (there have been a lot of those tonight) and the fight starts on the floor before the bell.

Kane throws him halfway inside for the bell and some elbows to the chest keep the champ in trouble. The threat of a chokeslam sends Angle to the ropes but we cut to the back to see Haku and Rikishi beating Undertaker down. Back in the arena, Kane doesn’t notice and hits a clothesline. Some suplexes just make Kane sit up a few times and a clothesline does the same. A backdrop sends Angle flying as he can’t do anything with the monster. Angle finally goes with a front facelock to slow him down but that doesn’t work either.

Instead Angle grabs a chair, which Kane kicks straight back into his face. There’s the side slam top drop Angle again and the top rope clothesline connects. Cue Haku and Rikishi though with the referee somehow not calling for the DQ. With the referee yelling at Rikishi, Haku chairs Kane twice and superkicks him down so Angle can retain.

Rating: C+. Not bad at all here and they even covered why Undertaker wasn’t out there. This was another protected loss and that’s the right move with someone as hot as Kane was coming off the Royal Rumble. Angle escapes with the title, which fits him perfectly, and the match was fine enough. It was well booked instead of being great, which is an acceptable way to go.

Post match Kane gets beaten down so here’s a beaten up Undertaker for the save. Another beatdown lets Rikishi and Haku stand tall to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. So why did this work so well? A lot of it would be how fast they kept things, which yes, does mean they kept the matches short. It’s ok to have a long match every now and then but when you’re having multiple fifteen minute matches every week, the fans aren’t going to keep paying attention. This show moved around very well and the big stories held it together. Of course the talent helped, but they kept thing flowing and that’s almost as important. Very fun show here and the followup should be good too.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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: May 23, 2019
Location: Times Union Center, Albany, New York
Commentators: Renee Young, Byron Saxton, Sam Roberts

I’m officially no longer sure what to expect here as last week’s didn’t include anything from Smackdown and that makes the show a lot harder to understand. If the point of the show is to have highlights from the main two shows, having material from the main two shows could be advised. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Tamina vs. Natalya

Renee says Tamina is a locker room leader. No wonder the company is in trouble. Natalya’s headlock doesn’t work very well to start as Tamina starts cranking on the arm. That earns her a beating in the corner and Tamina misses a charge into the post. The Sharpshooter isn’t happening yet as Tamina kicks her away and nails a clothesline. We’re already in the chinlock and the fans aren’t exactly pleased. A rollup gives Natalya two as watching Tamina isn’t the most entertaining thing in the world.

Sam talks about how Tamina doesn’t feel the need to talk about her last name all the time like Natalya does. True indeed. I can’t remember the last time Natalya didn’t bring up the Wilsons every chance she had. Natalya can’t slam her and a superkick cuts off the discus lariat for two. Not that it matters as Natalya is right back with the Sharpshooter for the tap at 5:47. Score one for the Wilsons!

Rating: D+. This wasn’t terrible actually, though watching Tamina made me feel depressed all over again. I’m really not sure what WWE sees in her, especially with the whole Jimmy Snuka being excommunicated thing. It could have been a lot worse, but Natalya can only carry Tamina so far.

We look at Brock Lesnar winning the Men’s Money in the Bank match.

From Smackdown (what a concept).

Here’s an excited New Day to announce that Big E. is back. Someone is brought out under a sheet and it’s….not E. Whoever it is is smaller that Xavier Woods and he is promptly thrown out. The real Big E. comes out and there’s a party ready for him in the ring, complete with blocks and a WELCOME BACK sign. Oh and lots of pancakes of course.

Big E. asks if he can smell the other two, with Woods saying that Big E. is medically cleared to sniff. Big E. brings up Becky Lynch’s mother but Woods cuts him off, though he does agree that she’s rather attractive. Kofi gets them back on track and talks about Brock Lesnar winning Money in the Bank and Kevin Owens losing on Sunday, which brings out Owens and Sami Zayn.

Sami talks about Big E. being gone for six weeks when he was gone for nine months. Big E. thinks they should get Sami something, with the team deciding on getting him nothing. Owens leaves and Sami rants about the fans being toxic, only to be cut off by the trombone. Sami promises to beat Kofi tonight, which Kofi says he’ll take seriously.

And from later on Smackdown.

Kofi Kingston vs. Sami Zayn

Non-title. Hang on though as Big E. has been attacked and says it was Owens. Kofi is aggressive to start and runs Sami over on the floor. Back in and Sami sends him over the top and then into the steps before giving himself some jumping applause. Kofi hits a dropkick for a breather and we take a break. We come back with Sami hitting a top rope superplex for two as we hear about Woods going with Big E. to a hospital. Sami misses a kick to the face but Trouble in Paradise misses as well. The second Trouble in Paradise connects for the pin at 8:14 to finish Zayn.

Rating: C. This had some big spots but they were packed into a short match. It’s still annoying to have Sami losing after cutting such great promos but I’ll take what I can get in a pretty action packed match. If nothing else, how bad of a sign is it that the former World Champion not losing is that big of a relief?

Post match here’s Paul Heyman with the briefcase to tease Kofi, saying it’s the perfect time. Cue DOLPH ZIGGLER from behind to attack Kofi, including wrapping a chair around his neck and sending him into the announcers’ table. Ziggler even Pillmanizes the neck and Kofi does a stretcher job….before getting up on the stage and limping off. So, again, how many people can’t get to TV or can’t get off the upper midcard treadmill as they bring in ZIGGLER for a likely World Title match?

We look at Bayley winning and cashing in Money in the Bank.

From Raw.

Here’s Mick Foley to debut the new title. He thinks there is something missing from Raw and it’s time to revisit those three letters: R-A-W. As the cover is falling off the new title, Foley says it takes a lot to be a champion in WWE (get with the times buddy). It’s something that you should sacrifice teeth and an ear for and fight 24/7 to achieve. The new title is the 24/7 Title, with a big 24/7 as the center plate.

This title can be defended anytime, anyplace, anywhere. The fans rightfully boo this out of the building and Foley seems a little shaken. You could get pinned going down the slide at Chuck E. Cheese or even in the shower, as long as there is a referee present. We are going to crown a new champion right here in the form of a scramble, with any every superstar from the Raw, Smackdown, 205 Live, NXT, NXT UK and maybe a legend being eligible to win the title. The title is laid in the ring and whomever retrieves it achieves it.

24/7 Title: Scramble

The lower card runs to the ring to get the title with Eric Young even making an appearance. We get the classic idea of fighting instead of running into the ring to get the title. Eric Young and Cedric Alexander get in the ring but get pulled out, allowing Anderson and Gallows to pick it up. That doesn’t count because it’s not one (But the Usos are one Wild Card entry?) so No Way Jose and EC3 break that up. Drake Maverick and Titus O’Neil go after it next with Titus throwing Maverick over the top and picking up the title to win at 2:37.

And then Robert Roode runs out and rolls Titus up on the ramp to win the title. Everyone gives chase, which I’m sure is what passes for entertainment around here.

Post break Roode hides as the mob runs the other way.

Roode runs for the parking lot and hides in R-Truth’s trunk. The mob comes up and Truth says he went that way. They run the other way and Truth gets Roode out of the trunk. Roode opens the door and finds…..a referee. Truth sends him into the side of the car and gets the pin and the title before driving off. At least Truth can bring some funny stuff to the title.

Super ShowDown rundown.

EC3 vs. Cedric Alexander

Yes this is getting a rematch. Cedric grabs a headlock and spins out of a wristlock counter. EC3’s headlock doesn’t work either as Cedric hits a dropkick for two so frustration can set in. One heck of a clothesline takes Cedric’s head off and we take a break. Back with Cedric fighting out of a chinlock and getting stomped down in the corner for his efforts.

An elbow to the face cuts off Cedric’s comeback attempt and EC3 gets one off a running flip neckbreaker. The front facelock goes on, followed by the EC3 Elbow, only to have Cedric get two off a small package. The springboard clothesline gives Alexander two but EC3 gets in his forward DDT for the same. Back up and Cedric grabs the Lumbar Check for the pin at 10:43.

Rating: D. This wasn’t working with EC3’s offense not being great in the first place and Cedric never feeling like he was in jeopardy. I’d still love to know what EC3 did to ruin his career in WWE as this is one of the most confusing removal of a wrestler’s legs that I can remember seeing in a long time. Bad match, though Cedric actually appearing on Raw would be nice.

And from Smackdown to wrap it up.

Roman Reigns vs. Elias

Shane is in Elias’ corner and handles his introduction. Reigns starts fast with the apron dropkick to rock Elias. Hang on though as he has to glare at Shane, allowing Elias to kick the rope for a low blow. A DDT gives Elias two and he sends Reigns shoulder first into the post. Back from a break with Reigns hitting the corner clotheslines but Shane breaks up the Superman Punch, allowing Elias to hit the jumping knee in the corner. An electric chair is broken up and Reigns hits a good right hand.

Another keeps Elias in trouble but he elbows out of a super Samoan drop. Now the electric chair into a powerbomb gives Elias two and it’s time for the slugout. The Superman Punch gets two with Shane putting Elias’ foot on the ropes. That earns Shane an apron dropkick but Elias sends Reigns into the post and then the steps. Back in and Elias drops a top rope elbow for two so Shane tells him to take off a buckle pad. The distraction lets Shane put the guitar in the corner but Reigns spears Elias for the pin at 9:30.

Rating: C. This feels like an old NWA style angle where if Reigns wins he gets five minutes with the annoying manager, but the manager happens to be the final boss and the biggest threat to actually beat him. Shane was portrayed as the evil mastermind here but he’s the kind of evil mastermind who can win a big match as well. That’s quite the heel power for someone who can’t get through a five minute match without needing oxygen.

Post match Shane grabs the guitar but Reigns takes it away. Cue Drew McIntyre to Claymore Reigns to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. What does it say that the best part of Raw, as in the part that deserved to be presented twice, was a “match” where you ran in and literally picked up a belt to win the thing? That’s as good as they had this week? The Smackdown stuff was fine, but Smackdown was a much better show. WWE is crawling around in the dark right now and this show didn’t seem like there is any hope of finding a way out soon.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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

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