IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: December 19, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson, Mauro Ranallo

We’ve got a pair of big matches this week, starting with Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke making their in-ring debuts against Io Shirai and Dakota Kai. Other than that though we have Johnny Gargano vs. Aleister Black inside of a steel cage. You don’t get these things very often in NXT and that alone makes it feel more special. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at Gargano vs. Black, which has certainly been built up well over the last few weeks

Opening sequence.

Marina Shafir/Jessamyn Duke vs. Io Shirai/Dakota Kai

Kai takes Duke down to start and gets in a quick double stomp to the chest. It’s off to Shafir for something close to an Eye of the Hurricane for two and it’s back to Duke for the neck crank. Kai finally scores with a scorpion kick to the head for a breather and that’s enough for the hot tag to Shirai. A 619 hits Shafir and a springboard dropkick keeps her in trouble. The running knees in the corner make it even worse and with Kai taking Duke off the apron, Shirai drops the moonsault for the pin at 4:27.

Rating: C-. Duke and Shafir didn’t get to show off that much but they weren’t in there long enough to embarrass themselves either. They’re not ready to beat a team like Shirai and Kai anyway so the ending is perfectly fine. This was perfectly fine and keeping it short was the absolutely right idea.

Dominik Dijakovic is coming tonight.

We look at Matt Riddle beating Punishment Martinez two weeks ago but getting jumped by Kassius Ohno.

Riddle can’t blame Ohno for jumping him from behind after Riddle knocked him out in seven seconds last time.

Aaron Mackey vs. Dominik Dijakovic

Dominik starts striking away with ease early on and a standing throw over his shoulder makes things even worse. Feast Your Eyes (a reverse AA into a knee to the face) finishes Mackey at 1:18. Total squash and rather intimidating performance from Dijakovic. I’m still not sure why they needed to change the name though.

Video on Heavy Machinery. They get a Tag Team Title shot next week in what sounds like a farewell match.

Shirai is now in the #1 contenders match.

Heavy Machinery vs. Danny Dacarto/Mike Howell

Rating: D+. Literal squash here with the Compactor being a good finishing move. This worked perfectly well but I’m not sure how many teams Heavy Machinery is going to be able to do this to or with on the main roster. They seem almost destined to become cannon fodder in short order, which is about as much of a death sentence as you can get. As usual, enjoy them in NXT while you can.

Johnny Gargano vs. Aleister Black

Inside a cage with pinfall, submission or escape rules. Gargano runs out and jumps Black before he can get inside and they fight on the floor before the bell. Some kicks to the chest rock Gargano and Black throws him inside so we can officially get going. A dropkick to the knee takes Johnny down but Gargano sidesteps the standing Lionsault. Black kicks the cage by mistake but Gargano is smart enough to climb back down because he knows Black isn’t done yet.

Some left hands have Black in more trouble and even more rock him in the corner. Black comes back with more kicks and goes up top but, realizing that it’s too early to leave, moonsaults down onto Johnny in a good looking jump. Some whips into the cage have Gargano in more trouble and it’s time for the rapid fire kicks. Black goes all the way up and gets a leg over the top but comes back in instead, which sounds destined to cause him trouble later.

Gargano can’t get out either as Black pulls him back down so they’re both on the top. You don’t do that to Gargano, who jumps up for a heck of a sunset bomb (that looked sweet) and a near fall as the fans are impressed. Gargano actually wins a strike off until Black takes his head off with a jumping knee to the face. That’s almost enough to knock Gargano out of the cage but Black pulls him right back in. Black gets caught in the Gargano Escape though and the break only earns him a whip into the cage.

Johnny slaps it on again before going up, with Black charging up the ropes for the save. They’re on top again and Black shoves off what looked like a super cutter, setting up a Meteora instead. A German suplex gives Black two but Johnny sends him into the cage. Gargano says he absolves Black of his sins and loads up the superkick, only to charge into Black Mass.

After taking their time getting up, Black goes for the door and Johnny goes over the top but here’s Tommaso Ciampa to slam the door on Black’s head. Johnny climbs back in and, with chants of DIY, Gargano and Ciampa hit Meet in the Middle. Even though the fans cheered for it, they seem shocked when it actually happened. A smiling Ciampa leaves a confused Gargano to get the pin at 18:00.

Rating: A-. Heck of a match here but the ending is all that is going to matter. There are several ways to go with that finish as Gargano looked unsure of what he was doing but he certainly didn’t mind embracing the evil to take care of Black. Ciampa’s smile suggested that this was what he wanted all along and that leaves some very interesting options on the table. Black might even want to get some help against the possibly reunited team….and I have no idea who he might pick.

The match itself was a blast with both guys hitting some huge spots and trying to win but coming back for more violence. This was great all around, but the ending stole the show and leaves you wondering what we have next. Gargano being added to the title match in Phoenix wouldn’t shock me either and would make sense at this point.

Overall Rating: B+. The main event is more than enough to carry this but the rest left a bit to be desired. Dijakovic had a good debut and the Heavy Machinery squash was fun, but the tag match was pretty uneventful and felt like something they needed to get out of the way rather than anything that mattered. Still though, the twist ending is great and came after an awesome match and that’s more than enough to make things work for another week.

Results

Io Shirai/Dakota Kai b. Marina Shafir/Jessamyn Duke – Moonsault to Shafir

Dominik Dijakovic b. Aaron Mackey – Feast Your Eyes

Heavy Machinery b. Danny Dacarto/Mike Howell – Double Compactor

Johnny Gargano b. Aleister Black – Meet in the Middle

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: December 19, 2018
Location: Plymouth Pavilions, Devon, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

It’s the last show of the third taping cycle and that means we’re getting close to being caught up from these tapings. It’s time to focus on the main event guys again with Joe Coffey back in the main event. I’m not wild on Gallus, but it’s a good idea to have something like them as the top villains, just as a placeholder if nothing else. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Toni Storm vs. Charlie Morgan

We get the handshake and now they’re ready to go. An early slap to the face wakes Toni up and she’s right back with some slaps of her own. A dropkick gives Toni one and it’s off to an STF with Storm laying back to back instead of the usual method. After the rope grab, Morgan scores with an enziguri to take Storm down for the first time. The camel clutch goes on with the fans wanting Toni to fight back. Toni does just that with a release German suplex and there’s the running hip attack in the corner. Storm Zero finishes Morgan at 3:56.

Rating: D+. Pretty basic match here as Storm gets a win to get her back on the right track after the loss to Rhea Ripley. She’s the kind of person who is going to be a star for a long time around here with the natural charisma and skills alone so this isn’t surprising. Morgan seems fine but I haven’t really seen enough of her yet.

Video on Gallus.

Flash Morgan Webster/Mark Andrews vs. Zack Gibson/James Drake

As the fans who hate Gibson stand up because they hate Gibson, Gibson gets taken down with a double hiptoss into a shooting star/moonsault combination. It’s off to Webster for the Rude Boy Block on Drake as Gibson is taking his wrist tape off. Said tape is thrown at Webster, letting Drake send him outside for a backbreaker onto the apron. The crowd takes their shoes off as Gibson gets two off a clothesline. Drake forearms the heck out of Webster for two and we hit a chinlock. A slide between the ropes and a kick off are enough for the hot tag to Andrews and it’s time to clean house.

Everything breaks down and Andrews gets two on Drake off a spinning DDT. Ticket To Ride gets the same on Andrews so it’s back to Webster for a reverse hurricanrana on Drake. Webster gets enziguried and thrown outside so Andrews has to hit a double Stundog Millionaire. Fall To Pieces is loaded up but Fabian Aichner comes in for a distraction. The second Fall To Pieces hits the illegal Drake, allowing Gibson to lock in Shankley Gates for the tap at 8:50.

Rating: C+. This worked better than I was expecting as Gibson and Drake continue to be one of the best acts on the show. They work well together and Gibson is by far the most over heel around here. Just put them in the title match against Moustache Mountain already and everything should be fine.

Post match Aichner goes after Andrews until Webster helps him clear the ring.

Killer Kelly vs. Nina Samuels

Nina flips away from Kelly to start but gets shouldered down for her efforts. Back up and Nina grabs a full nelson to take Kelly to the mat again. Since a full nelson isn’t ending a match, Nina ties her in the ropes for a dropkick to the back. Kelly makes her comeback with some forearms and a suplex into the corner, which doesn’t really change anything as Nina didn’t hit anything out of the ordinary. A basement dropkick gives Kelly two but Nina grabs her by the hair (wrapping it around her fist) and sends her hard into the corner. That and a fireman’s carry backbreaker are enough to finish Kelly at 4:29.

Rating: D+. I’m kind of surprised by Kelly losing so much as she seems like the kind of person that WWE would be more interested in pushing, if nothing else towards a midcard role. Samuels doesn’t exactly stand out, but that’s been the case with most of the roster so it’s not really fair to single her out.

Aichner says he’s not allowing Webster and Andrews to become Tag Team Champions. He’ll even find his own partner to make sure it doesn’t happen.

Joe Coffey vs. Travis Banks

Neither has backup here, at least to start. Banks is fired up to start and slugs away with forearms as the fans are behind Banks to start. Coffey gets sent outside for an apron kick to the chest. The suicide dive through the ropes….I guess was punched out of the air though the camera didn’t catch it.

Back in and Coffey stomps away before starting in on the injured shoulder. A full nelson (doesn’t seem to be locked in) takes Banks down and Coffey drops an elbow on the bad arm. Coffey shrugs off a missed elbow and pulls on the arm again. Banks finally gets in a jumping knee which knocks Coffey’s mouthpiece out for a good visual.

The running dropkick to the back of the head gives Banks two but he runs into a powerslam out of the corner for two more. A swing into a belly to belly gives Coffey two more so Banks shoves him off the top and hits a middle rope dropkick. The fisherman’s buster has Coffey rolling outside and this time the suicide dive connects as designed. Back in and Coffey sends him hard into the corner, setting up the discus lariat. The first is blocked but hurts Banks’ arm, meaning the second attempt is good for the pin at 12:13.

Rating: C. Bringing Banks back is a good sign and pushing him as a face is almost a necessity because so many people are so similar. Banks can wrestle a good, aggressive style and then cut a nice promo to go with it, but at the moment you have to build up Coffey to go after Dunne so a win over an injured Banks is the right way to go.

Overall Rating: C. Another perfectly fine show here and you got to see some of the more talented people around. Gibson is becoming a gem and Coffey is the next challenger for Dunne. They’ve become a lot more entertaining to watch over the last few weeks and the longer that’s true, the better things are going to be around here. Good enough show here, but the back to back shows aren’t doing them any favors.

Results

Toni Storm b. Charlie Morgan – Storm Zero

Zack Gibson/James Drake b. Mark Andrews/Flash Morgan Webster – Shankley Gates to Andrews

Nina Samuels b. Killer Kelly – Fireman’s carry backbreaker

Joe Coffey b. Travis Banks – Discus lariat

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: December 19, 2018
Location: Plymouth Pavilions, Devon, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

We’re getting into some interesting times now with the announcement of the NXT UK Tag Team Titles. That instantly gives a lot of people something to do and that’s a good thing around here. Other than that we have some people coming after the United Kingdom Title, which needs to change hands sooner rather than later so Pete Dunne isn’t miles ahead of everyone else. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video previews Rhea Ripley defending the Women’s Title against Isla Dawn tonight. This might work better if Dawn’s witch thing actually developed whatsoever.

Opening sequence.

Jordan Devlin vs. Mike Hitchman

An early fireman’s carry takeover puts Devlin down but he hits some forearms to the back to put Boar in trouble. The chinlock goes on for a bit before an Irish whip into the corner messes with Boar’s back again. The release Rock Bottom looks to set up the standing moonsault but Boar is out of the way. Boar hits a backsplash but can’t hit a package piledriver. Instead Devlin kicks him in the head, only to miss a moonsault. The pop up powerbomb gives Boar two, only to have Devlin snap off the Ireland’s Call for the pin at 4:57.

Rating: C-. Devlin is someone they want to push and his work has gotten better but he doesn’t exactly offer anything special. He has a good look and can wrestle a match, but the “I’m the best and will be the champion” thing has been done to death and puts him in the middle of a large group of people doing and saying almost the exact same thing.

Post match Devlin says betting on him isn’t a gamble because the Ace trumps all.

Moustache Mountain likes NXT UK so far and now it’s time to win the titles. First though, they need to take care of Gallus.

Flash Morgan Webster and Mark Andrews want the Tag Team Titles as well because they’re exciting.

Fabian Aichner vs. Eddie Ryan

Ryan wears a lion mask to the ring because he’s the English Lion. He certainly has a good look to him. Aichner won’t shake hands to start and the threat of a headbutt makes Eddie back off. A dropkick staggers Aichner though and a clothesline takes him outside. Back in and a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker plants Eddie, followed by a belly to back suplex for two. Ryan knocks him into the corner, setting up the middle rope European uppercut. Aichner has had it with him though and sends Eddie outside for the running knee into the steps. The helicopter bomb gives Aichner the pin at 5:07.

Rating: C. I liked both guys here as they offer something a little different than the same people that populate this show so often. These are two big guys who hit each other hard, setting them apart from the aforementioned “I’m from the UK and I’m tough”, which gets a little difficult to take time after time.

Video on Travis Banks.

Tyson T-Bone/Saxon Huxley vs. Moustache Mountain

T-Bone hammers on Bate to start and drives him into the corner for the tag off to Huxley so the beating can begin. The middle rope elbow to the jaw takes Huxley down though and Seven comes in to scare him to the floor. Back in and T-Bone pops Seven in the jaw with a right hand to take over with the villains getting the better of things in the corner. They take turns hitting Seven in the face and a crossbody against the ropes gets two.

The front facelock slows Seven down even more until T-Bone hammers away with forearms to the back. T-Bone’s big right hand is countered with a snapdragon suplex, followed by an enziguri for the tag to Bate. A German suplex takes Huxley down and the running shooting star gets two. Bate’s suicide dive takes T-Bone down and the clothesline/dragon suplex combination finishes Huxley at 7:03.

Rating: C. It’s pretty clear that Moustache Mountain is going to be in the title match whenever the titles are decided and that’s just fine. Now if this place is smart, they’ll have them lose in the title match and make a new team so they can set up a big rematch down the line. Hopefully that’s where we go, because it’s what makes the most sense and has the most potential.

After beating Eddie Dennis last week, Dave Mastiff wants the UK Title. Dennis runs in and beats him down.

Video on Pete Dunne.

Next week: Toni Storm is back, Webster/Andrews vs. James Drake/Zack Gibson and Joe Coffey vs. Travis Banks.

Women’s Title: Isla Dawn vs. Rhea Ripley

Ripley is defending for the first time. Dawn’s headlock doesn’t get her very far so she takes Ripley down for one instead. The headlock on the mat works a bit better but Ripley is right back up with a running dropkick to take over. Ripley slams her down for two more and puts a boot on the back for some posing. The chinlock goes on for a bit, followed by a hard clothesline for two on Dawn.

A victory roll is countered into Ripley’s standing cloverleaf until Dawn rolls her way out. Ripley misses a big boot and goes shoulder first into the post (that’s an epidemic anymore). Dawn knees her in the ribs and the snap suplex Jackhammer gets two. Nigel: “Dawn has put away everybody with that bridging suplex.” Has she won three matches with it yet? Riptide retains the title a few seconds later at 9:00.

Rating: C. This was similar to any first title defense with little drama and nothing more than a way to get Ripley a title defense under her belt. The wrestling was fine though I can’t say I’m surprised at the lack of a reaction at Dawn’s big near fall. That’s all this needed to be as Ripley is likely to hold the title for a pretty long time to come.

Replays and posing take us out.

Overall Rating: C+. Perfectly fine show this week as you can see the first Takeover card from here. That doesn’t mean it’s anything thrilling, but I’ll take acceptable over “let’s get this over with” any day. They still have a long way to go for their midcard character development but things could be far worse considering how long the show has been around. Not a bad show at all here, though the same problems still exist.

Results

Jordan Devlin b. Wild Boar – Ireland’s Call

Fabian Aichner b. Eddie Ryan – Helicopter bomb

Moustache Mountain b. Saxon Huxley/Tyson T-Bone – Clothesline/dragon suplex combination to Huxley

Rhea Ripley b. Isla Dawn – Riptide

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

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

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

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

Since they keep putting out more and more stuff almost every single day.

First up was the newest Chronicle, with a shorter form version on Becky Lynch. This could have been any mini documentary as it only runs about twenty five minutes and covers a three week period. It made a lot of sense to do something like this as Becky is the hottest thing in wrestling at the moment and is going to be a big deal going forward. The special serves as a way to talk about Becky’s backstory and her transformation into the Man, including how many things she’s gotten to do since. You don’t need to see something like this but for a quick watch, it’s not bad.

Then you have the real treat with the second season of the Edge and Christian Show. I’ve praised this show a lot over the first season and this is no exception. It’s basically a wrestling geek’s dream show with all kinds of inside references (like Edge rapping about being ready to survive on the mean streets of Greenwich (after being coached by Pete Gas of course) with the line of “I’ve got more sweater vests than Sunny has court dates.”) and cameos.

The best part of every show is the Chumpstain Challenge, the season long trivia competition with Edge and Christian competing where you can play against them (I smoked them on Survivor Series teams) in a heck of a competitive series. There’s too much good stuff on this show to talk about and it’s more than worth seeing. Just watch this and enjoy being a wrestling geek, because it’s as good as it gets for something like this.

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #35
Date: December 14, 2018
Location: Scottish Rite Temple, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

This is a special edition of Fusion as they are LIVE from Miami, marking the first time that they’re not taped. Tonight’s show is part of a larger series of tapings but the live aspect is something special that really does feel like a big deal. With some luck they can hit it out of the park, though that’s never a guarantee. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with Promociones Dorado laying out Team Filthy in the back. Salina de la Renta reminds us that we are live and warns Tom Lawlor that they’re coming.

Opening sequence.

Lawlor is on his way here due to getting his injured hand looked at elsewhere.

Middleweight Title: Gringo Loco vs. Dezmond Xavier vs. Hijo de LA Park vs. Kotto Brazil

This is a ladder match and the title is vacant coming in due to Maxwell Jacob Friedman injuring his elbow. The lineup for the match has changed about half a dozen times coming in so it’s nice to have an actual group of competitors for a change. Actually hang on as Teddy Hart is here and decks Dezmond on the way in, setting up an Arabian Press to take him out again. I guess it’s a five way now.

Middleweight Title: Gringo Loco vs. Dezmond Xavier vs. Hijo de LA Park vs. Kotto Brazil vs. Teddy Hart

Teddy goes for a ladder but Kotto takes him down with a slingshot forearm. Park follows them out and Pillmanizes Brazil’s ankle as the fans chant for Gringo. Brazil’s troubles aren’t done though as Park wraps the ladder around his leg and crushes it with the chair. Park heads back inside and gets in a chair duel with Gringo but they let it go to kick Dezmond in the face. A headscissors sends Gringo to the floor and there’s another superkick to put Hart outside as well.

Dezmond gets sent to the apron so Park hits a sunset bomb to the floor. That gives us the Park vs. Hart showdown as we hear about Salina wrecking havoc in the back. The kind of havoc isn’t specified but it is indeed being wrecked. Hart misses a moonsault but hits his walk onto the back into a sunset bomb, which has nothing to do with this match. With havoc managed, Salina comes out to support Park as Gringo and Dezmond come in. Loco hits a Spanish Fly on Xavier and we take a very abrupt break.

Back with everyone on the floor until Hart hits a big moonsault onto the three who don’t have severely damaged legs (sticking the landing of course). We finally get the first ladder thrown in but Hart and Park have to fight on the floor before anyone can climb. It’s Hart getting the better of the climb but having to slug it out with Loco on top.

Hart knocks him off so Loco lands on the top rope and springboards back into a cutter on Xavier in an awesome spot. Hart gets a DDT on Park and goes up again but this time Park shoves him down. Dezmond knocks Park off the top of the ladder and gets a hand on the title but Park needs to bridge a ladder onto the ropes instead of making the save because that’s the spot they had planned.

Instead, Dezmond gets knocked onto the bridged ladder but here’s Kotto back in as Hart moonsaults onto Xavier. Kotto unloads with a chair to various people but Hart chairs him off the ladder, with Kotto falling before the contact was ever actually made. Project Ciampa drops Brazil again and Hart wins the title at 13:57.

Rating: B-. This wasn’t an all time classic or anything but they took their time and Hart winning is the right call. He’s crazy over with the fans and can still have entertaining matches so give him the title and let him elevate it a good bit. That’s all you could go with here and he should be an improvement over Friedman.

Lawlor says it’s the time for fighting, not talking.

Rush will face LA Park at the Wrestlemania weekend show. Trash was talked at the press conference in New York.

Dragon Lee vs. DJZ

I believe both guys are debuting here. They hit the mat to start with neither being able to get anywhere. A dropkick puts DJZ on the floor but he comes back in for a double cartwheel into stereo tranquilo poses. Lee gets sent to the floor and that means the big flip dive. Back in and DJZ hits a slingshot splash, followed by a Lionsault for two. Lee is right back with a running dropkick in the corner and a shoulder breaker puts DJZ down again.

They trade some strikes to the face and a rolling DDT from Lee gives us a double knockdown. Since you don’t stay down in a match like this, they both head up until Lee hits the top rope double stomp ala Alberto Del Rio. That’s good for two back inside but Lee’s powerbomb is countered into a fast Canadian Destroyer for the same. A Dragon Driver (suplex into a sitout powerbomb for a cool move) gets two more and another one finishes DJZ at 7:00.

Rating: C+. This was the spot fest match of the show, which says a lot when there was a long ladder match beforehand. Both guys looked good here and there’s a reason to believe that the two of them are going to stick around for the middleweight division. Lee looked great in ROH and the same was true here. As a bonus, DJZ is that much better than he was in TNA, where he was just annoying as opposed to someone talented like he apparently is.

An annoyed Salina tries to leave with Promociones Dorado and has to dive into the limo to get away from Lawlor.

Video on Superfight, featuring Lawlor vs. Low Ki for the World Title.

We get an H2 video n the Hart Foundation as Brian Pillman messes around at the hotel. He winds up getting the Rookie of the Year award.

Lawlor and Park are still fighting. We can’t see this, but apparently it’s true.

Simon Gotch is ready to face Lawlor in the no ropes, no holds barred fight next week. Next week, Lawlor’s nightmares are just beginning.

Rush vs. Rich Swann

Swann wants to dance to start so Rush hits him in the face. Maybe that’ll teach him to pay attention. Rush takes it to the floor and tosses a metal trashcan at Swann’s head to really take over in a violent way. They head over to the announcers’ table and Tony sounds half scared and half annoyed. Back in and Rush hits a running clothesline in the corner, followed by a kick to the face. Swann’s chops have no effect but a single one from Rush takes him down to his knees.

After taking his time getting up, Swann springboards into a cutter to get himself a much needed breather. It’s time to slug away with some rather loud strikes and Rush is down this time. A running flip dive off the apron puts Rush down on the floor and there’s the running flip dive off the top to make it even worse. Back in and Swann gets two off a frog splash but charges into a belly to belly in the corner.

Swann’s spinning kick to the head and the rolling DDT get two more but Rush is right back with a superplex. They’re certainly trading the big spots here and that’s a good thing. An enziguri staggers Rush so he comes right back with a headbutt for the double knockdown. The running dropkick misses Swann but his 450 hits knees. Rush is done with this though and the Rush Driver (double underhook piledriver) is good for the pin at 9:46.

Rating: B-. I had a good time with this one as they were hitting each other really hard and trading one big spot after another. That’s the kind of match that Rush needs to win as Swann has credibility and a hard hitting win over him is a good start. Rush comes off as a star and that’s a great thing to have around here. Nice match here, with Swann looking very solid as well.

Post match LA Park comes out and the fight is on with referees breaking it up in a hurry. Rush leaves and here’s Low Ki to promise to beat Lawlor. Cue Lawlor for the big brawl to end the show. That’s a strong ending as they had a hot fight that was built up throughout the show.

Overall Rating: B+. For their first live special, this was quite the hit with all three matches being entertaining. They did exactly what they needed to with some good matches and angles that I want to see move forward. It’s a good introduction for new fans that gave you a reason to come back. Well done on all accounts and that’s a good sign.

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

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

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

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

It’s already on WWE.com but I don’t like having stuff spoiled against my will either.Rusev beat Shinsuke Nakamura for the US Title.

I can’t say I blame them and while this is roughly eight months overdue, it’s nice to see them finally going with someone the fans actually want to see.  Nakamura wasn’t doing a thing with the title (he had held it for five months and I think people stopped noticing about two months in) and given that his contract is up next month, it wouldn’t stun me to see him leave.  His run with the company has been nothing since he got to the main roster and he’s a legend in Japan.  Still though, well done on pulling the trigger, even if the target was in the crosshairs a long time ago.

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: December 18, 2018
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Commentators: Tom Phillips, David Otunga, Corey Graves

The big story coming out of last night was the huge shakeup with the McMahons taking over the company again. This presents the question of what that means for Smackdown, which could be a few different things. The main story coming out of TLC is Asuka as the new Women’s Champion, which is likely setting up a big title match at the Royal Rumble. Let’s get to it.

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

Shane McMahon gives a speech to the locker room, recapping what happened last night and saying they owe this to the WWE Universe. Everyone needs to go for the brass ring and they’re all accountable. Paige is officially out as GM, but will still have a role on the show. Well thank goodness for that. Why would we want someone young, fresh and talented in the roll when we could have an old guy instead?

Here’s a ticked off Becky Lynch to open things up. She’s not cool with meetings so it doesn’t matter what Shane said. It doesn’t matter who is running the show because it’s all about someone delivering Ronda Rousey to her right now. She didn’t come this far to have a ladder turned over so it’s time to fight. This brings out Charlotte instead, to say that Becky can take a number. Say perhaps the number two, because she’s in line behind Charlotte to get at Ronda. Becky says the days of pretending to be behind Charlotte are over, but Charlotte thinks the days of Becky looking up at her will be then, now and forever.

Cue Asuka to say forget Ronda because she’s the champion. Becky and Charlotte call her a paper champion but here’s Vince McMahon for a very rare Smackdown appearance. Vince doesn’t want to hear complaints because anything goes in a TLC match, including Rousey interfering. As for tonight, Asuka is defending her title against….someone to be named and here’s Naomi to interrupt, with Vince getting in some dancing of course. We’ll have that title match right now.

Women’s Title: Asuka vs. Naomi

Naomi is challenging with Becky and Charlotte at ringside. They fight over a wristlock to start as the announcers recap the elimination of automatic rematches. Naomi takes her down and gets in a kick to the back until Asuka grabs an armbar to slow things down. The armbar goes on in the corner as well but Asuka takes too long yelling at Becky and Charlotte.

That’s enough for Naomi to get in a super Russian legsweep and we take a break. Back with both of them on the floor and Naomi hitting a spinning kick to the face from the barricade. Naomi takes it back inside for a bunch of kicks but the split legged moonsault hits knees. The Asuka Lock is broken up so Asuka pulls her back, only to get rolled up for two. The Rear View gets two but another Asuka Lock retains the title at 12:30.

Rating: C. There wasn’t any drama here but that wasn’t what they were going for. The point of this was to give Asuka a win over someone who has some credibility and that’s what they did well enough. The question now is who gets the Royal Rumble shot and ultimately the Wrestlemania shot, which is what really matters most.

Post match Asuka stares down Charlotte and Becky.

Miz knocks on the McMahon’s door and gets Vince instead of Shane. After making fun of Miz’s knock, Miz pitches his tag team with Shane to Vince. Miz actually asks for the blessing, but Vince says he doesn’t do that. Instead, Miz can go find a partner to face a team of Vince’s choosing to show how good he is.

Rusev and Lana want the US Title because Rusev is a hunk and his beard hair can be made into blankets for orphans.

Here’s Jeff Hardy for an apology from Samoa Joe. Jeff admits that he’s made mistakes but that was then and this is now. He’s alive and well and here today and he’s very thankful for that. This brings out Joe to say this is an intervention instead of an apology. Joe knows he’s going to break again one day and go right back where he was before. Jeff says that’s never happening and thinks Joe attacks other people’s weaknesses to cover up for his own insecurities. Is it because Joe has been here for two years and hasn’t won one title? Joe charges and gets caught with a Twist of Fate. As usual, Joe brings the awesome on the mic.

Miz/Mandy Rose vs. R-Truth/Carmella

Rose is quite the surprise and Graves is pleased. Graves: “CHRISTMAS HAS COME EARLY! MR. MCMAHON IS LIKE SANTA CLAUS BUT BETTER!” Truth brags about winning Mixed Match Challenge and says they’re looking forward to this match with Miz and Maryse. Carmella headscissors Carmella down and Truth knocks Miz outside….and let’s have the DANCE BREAK. Carmella superkicks Mandy but Miz grabs the Skull Crushing Finale to pin Truth at 1:26.

We look back at Mustafa Ali from Daniel Bryan from last week. Ali is officially on Smackdown, and that’s a very good thing.

Video on the upcoming NXT stars.

Here are the Usos to say that they should get a title shot because they didn’t get pinned at TLC. Instead they get the Good Brothers, who are tired of seeing the same three teams over and over again when they haven’t been on Smackdown since August. They want a match right now and the Usos are fine with that.

Usos vs. Good Brothers

Joined in progress with Anderson holding Jimmy in a chinlock and Gallows adds a running uppercut in the corner to keep him in trouble. Some elbows to the face set up another chinlock but Jimmy fights up and gets over for the hot tag to Jey. Everything breaks down and Anderson’s running kick in the corner gets two. The Boot of Doom is broken up though and it’s a chokebomb for two on Jey.

The Usos make back to back blind tags and it’s Jimmy clotheslining Gallows to the floor. Jey’s running dive is countered with a kick to the head and we take a break with Jey’s leg caught in the ropes. Back with Jimmy superkicking his way to freedom but here’s the Bar. Before they can do anything though, Sanity comes in for the double DQ at 7:52.

Rating: C. Works for me. The Smackdown division has needed fresh blood for a long time now and you have these teams sitting right there with nothing to do. There’s no logical reason to not put them into the mix and see what they can do. If nothing else you get some fresh matches, which is exactly what was promised.

Post match Sanity beats both teams down and leaves. The Bar does exactly the same and poses with the titles.

Shinsuke Nakamura isn’t scared of Rusev, and we see a video of his sillier moments on Total Divas, including grilling sans clothes and dressing up like a clown, showing more personality than pretty much any of the women on the show.

Next week: MizTV with Shane McMahon, Rusev gets his US Title shot and Jeff Hardy vs. Samoa Joe.

New Day tells us to watch their end of the year special tomorrow night.

Here’s Daniel Bryan for a chat before his tag match. Bryan says he killed the YES Movement and tore down the house that AJ Styles built. After all that though, the people, including these here in Fresno, California, are wrecking the planet. Fresno ranks #1 in California in pollution. That means SHAME, and a quote from Isaac Asimov about educating yourself being the most important kind of education. The people here are too stupid to learn that, but he’s here to teach them.

Mustafa Ali/AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan/Andrade Cien Almas

Joined in progress with Bryan tagging out so Ali can elbow Styles in the head for two. AJ is right back with the drop down into the dropkick and it’s off to Ali for a dropkick of his own. Bryan comes in for the kicks to the chest in the corner and an abdominal stretch to keep Ali in trouble. The rolling X Factor sends Bryan outside but Almas and Zelina Vega are there with the tranquilo pose to block the dive. AJ isn’t having that though and backdrops Ali onto Bryan as we take a break.

Back with Ali having to slip out of a Liontamer but Almas comes in for a running kick to the back of the head. Bryan comes in for the YES Kicks (with Almas handling the chanting), followed by the running clothesline to keep Ali in trouble. A surfboard into a dragon sleeper makes things even worse and it’s back to Almas for more kicks. Almas turns him inside out with a clothesline but the moonsault into a moonsault hits Ali’s knees. That’s finally enough for the diving tag off to AJ and the pace picks way up.

AJ gets two off a neckbreaker and the Calf Crusher has Bryan in trouble. Almas makes a save but the hammerlock DDT is broken up with Almas being sent outside. Ali slips off the steps but manages to turn it into an acceptable enough hurricanrana. Bryan’s running knee is countered into the moonsault reverse DDT and it’s back to Ali for a tornado DDT. AJ takes out Almas with the Phenomenal Forearm….and the 054 finishes Bryan at 17:39. Ali seemed to land on Bryan fairly hard but Bryan seemed ok.

Rating: B. Well that’s how you put someone over as a new talent and Ali is a good choice. He’ shad some incredible matches on 205 Live and I’m really glad to see him get rewarded for it. If nothing else, that might give more people a reason to head over to that show. If Ali can use it to get a big boost, other people can too. Also, it makes sense to move a high flier or two up rather than leave them on 205 Live. When you have someone who can do the flying like Ali, it shows off even more as there aren’t many on the roster doing that stuff. This should get Ali a one off title shot and that’s not bad for his second match on the main roster.

Overall Rating: B-. Like I’ve said since the announcement that Vince was changing things, Smackdown didn’t really need that much of a fix. It’s a good show with solid wrestling and storytelling, so what exactly needs to be saved? They really didn’t even change that much here as it was more about putting people already on the roster on the show for once, which isn’t exactly a major shift. In other words, Smackdown is still a pretty good show and they should stay the course. Nice stuff here, including a very surprising main event result.

Results

Asuka b. Naomi – Asuka Lock

Miz/Mandy Rose b. Carmella/R-Truth – Skull Crushing Finale to R-Truth

Good Brothers vs. Usos went to a double disqualification when Sanity interfered

AJ Styles/Mustafa Ali b. Daniel Bryan/Andrade Cien Almas – 054 to Bryan

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

WCCW TV
Date: March 3, 1984
Host: Bill Mercer

This is listed as being in the most complete form possible, which likely means something was removed for music copyright reasons.

Opening sequence.

Mercer is in a black room to introduce the show and talks about how much we all miss David.

Music video on David, including him in the woods and playing high school basketball and football.

Mercer talks about some of David’s accomplishments and big opponents.

We see an undated clip of David vs. Harley Race in a non-title match. David has him in trouble until a headbutt and knee drop put David down. More knees connect as we’re about ten minutes in. Race misses the middle rope headbutt and David gets the Claw (family finisher), apparently for the first time in his career. The blood starts flowing in a great visual and Race is out to give David the win, though I could have sworn they mentioned a first fall earlier.

Harley Race says if David hadn’t passed away, he would have been World Champion. That’s about as strong a level of praise as you’re going to get.

From Star Wars June 1983, David beats Jimmy Garvin (his longtime rival) to win the Texas Title and Garvin and Precious (Garvin’s valet) for a day. This one goes on for a few minutes but is mainly spent in a long chinlock. We don’t actually see the finish but David had a sleeper on.

Garvin, with Precious, talks about how well he knew David, to the point where he knew what David had for breakfast.

From an undisclosed date, David, Ice Man King Parsons and Kerry Von Erich vs. the Freebirds in one of roughly 1985382 matches the Von Erichs had against the team. This one is just a few seconds.

Michael Hayes (leader of the Freebirds) says this is going to be their only public statement. It was a tragedy and even the Freebirds know they lost a great warrior. The one thing David did was fight for what he believed in, and you have to respect that. The feud will never end though because there’s only room for one of them. This was as kayfabe of a response as you could and given the nature of their feud, I can live with that.

NWA World Title: Ric Flair vs. David Von Erich

Flair is defending on Christmas night 1983 in Reunion Arena in Dallas. An armbar has David in trouble as Flair shouts at the crowd at the fifteen minute mark. Some covers with the hold still on get two and Flair is getting ticked off at the pace of the count. David gets the sleeper on until Flair belly to backs his way out. It’s too early for the Claw though as Flair blocks the grip and heads up top, but it’s exactly the same result as it has been throughout his career.

The real comeback is on with right hands in the corner and a jumping knee to the face gives David two. Flair has had it with this and throws David over the top for the DQ….which the referee refuses to call. Back in and David gets two off a small package, followed by a suplex for the same. The Flair Flip in the corner sets up the Claw in the middle of the ring and the clip ends before the match is over. David would win by DQ. I won’t rate the match when we missed the first fifteen minutes, but what we got here was very good and you can see the star power in David, who had both the look and the work.

Flair talks about how they had professional differences but he knew David was a tremendous competitor and a tremendous man.

David Manning (WCCW referee) talks about how talented David was.

Another David video, this one about the family and growing up on the ranch. A lot of horseback riding ensues.

On the ranch, Fritz and the other sons, without looking at the camera, talks about how great a life David had and how much living he did in 25 years. He also talks about how big a star Mike can be because of how much he looks like David. They talk about how a Von Erich will win the World Title at some point in the future. The majority of this was about one of the boys becoming champion instead of David, which was quite the head trip.

Now we get a more traditional interview with Fritz, talking about David growing up with a love of the outdoors. He talks about what a great way it is to raise his children but says life goes on, even without David. Without being a Christian, this would have been incredibly hard. After talking about being with David in Heaven again one day, Fritz goes into a speech about how Mike will be a huge star for looking just like David. Kerry or Kevin will be the next World Champion and do it as a tribute to David’s memory.

The funeral for David was open to the public so they could say goodbye to him and the fans’ support meant a lot to Fritz. He’s made some mistakes raising them, but they’re not sissies. One more discussion of David in Heaven wraps us up. This was another nearly disturbing interview as Fritz seems to brush the death off for the sake of “oh well, business must go on”.

One more music video wraps things up.

The credits show a yellow rose and we end on an In Memory Of graphic.

Overall Rating: C. What in the world do you say to something like this? The wrestling wasn’t the point but my goodness this was hard to watch as Fritz kept talking about how business needed to keep going and how one of his kids was going to be World Champion. It was clear that David would have been a big star if given the chance, but egads things downhill in a hurry. While it was a rough spot at the time, it was yet to be known how terrifying a place the promotion had become.

This one is very sad, but the story would get even worse when the actual details came out. It’s interesting (and understandable) that they don’t actually mention anything about the details of David’s passing. Maybe they were still in shock (understandable) or maybe they didn’t want to tell their version of the events yet. Either way, it’s a very depressing moment, but it’s even worse when you see where things would be headed because of the environment.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

WCCW TV
Date: July 6, 1985
Location: Sportatorium, Dallas, Texas
Commentator: Bill Mercer

So a few weeks ago, I asked what people wanted to see more of from me. One thing I kept seeing was more WCCW, so I’ve picked ten episodes at random (random number generator) that I’ll be doing over the next little while. There are no connections between these shows but I don’t want to/don’t have time to do all of the shows. If nothing else it should be a nice sampler of everything the promotion had to offer. Let’s get to it.

Mercer runs down the card and previews the show. Promised tonight: an interview with Mike Von Erich about his shoulder injury. Oh dear.

Brian Adias vs. Kelly Kiniski

Kiniski (Gene’s son) is an anxious looking guy with a good look while Adias was best known as a friend of the Von Erichs and over by association. Kelly grabs him by the neck to start but gets reversed into a quickly reversed hammerlock. Some arm cranking keeps Kiniski slowed down until some forearms set up a chinlock. You don’t see that too often from the good guy so it’s off to a hammerlock instead. Adias finally charges into a knee in the corner though and a belly to back suplex gives Kiniski one.

Now we hit a proper chinlock until Kiniski drops him throat first across the top rope and tosses him outside. A sunset flip is broken up with a right hand and an atomic drop makes it even worse. That means another chinlock as Kiniski is about as fascinating as his father. Mercer says that’s every conceivable move Kiniski could use, which probably explains why his career didn’t go very far. Adias comes back with a dropkick but Kiniski headbutts him in the ribs to cut him off. A quick backslide gives Adias the pin at 8:50.

Rating: D. Adias was fine but he needed someone a little better than Kiniski to make this work. Really, his big thing was a couple of chinlocks and Mercer made it seem like that was all he could do. I know Adias was over because he was friends with the Von Erichs but there’s only so much that anyone can do in something like this.

Chris Adams vs. Mike Bond

Adams’ American Heavyweight Title isn’t on the line, though he actually lost it the day before this aired. Adams goes with a shove to the face to start so Bond backdrops him into an armbar. Back up and the referee tells Bond to open up those clenched fists. Apparently the open fists take away some of the strength as Adams takes him down with a headlock.

That goes on for a few moments so Mercer talks about all the cities in New York that are watching the show. Bond gets sent outside in a heap and gets kicked off the apron to make things even worse. Back in and Bond scores with a clothesline but Adams has had it and pounds him down in the corner. Bond slams him off the top but misses a top rope knee. A piledriver and the superkick finishes Bond at 6:13.

Rating: C. Much better than the opener here with Adams giving Bond a lot. The finish looked good two as Adams kicked his head off. Bond wasn’t exactly a name but Adams was quite the talent with a good look and the athleticism to back it up. Throw in that whole British gentleman thing and there was no way he wouldn’t be a star, which he certainly was.

We go to Mike Von Erich’s house where Ice Man King Parsons is rubbing Mike’s shoulder after he gets out of the pool. Mike doesn’t think he’ll need surgery because the rehabilitation is going well. Parsons yells about being there for Mike and all the training they’re doing to get the shoulder better. Mike will be back in two weeks and they’ll tell their story in the ring against Tim Brooks and the One Man Gang.

I know he meant well and his dad was the cause, but Mike just didn’t have it. He was stuttering during most of his lines here and didn’t have the look or the talking ability to be a star. Why would something like that matter to Fritz though? This is so sad to watch because the skills aren’t there and that made no difference whatsoever. That’s not Mike’s fault but Fritz didn’t care in the slightest because we were getting his kids no matter what.

Tim Brooks vs. Ice Man King Parsons

Brooks has super heel manager Gary Hart in his corner, along with One Man Gang (with a full head of hair). Kevin Von Erich comes out to even things up and it’s a big brawl before the bell. The villains are cleared out in short order and Kevin grabs a chair for a bonus. Do they really need that after beating the other two up that easily? Hart and company leave and we take a break, but I think you know where this is going.

Tim Brooks/One Man Gang vs. Ice Man King Parsons/Kevin Von Erich

Yeah it happened back then too. It’s another brawl to start with the villains being knocked outside again. Those two really aren’t very good at this bad guy thing. This time it’s Gang grabbing a chair of his own but Hart settles him down, leaving Parsons to headlock Brooks as the match actually breaks out. Kevin comes in to send Brooks face first into the post and then does it again, which is cool because he’s a Von Erich.

Everything breaks down for a bit until Kevin grabs a bodyscissors on Brooks. This one goes on for a long time, maybe because Kevin’s lack of boots gives him a better grip. The hold rolls over so Parsons tags himself in and everything breaks down again. It’s enough of a melee for Brooks to take over on Parsons, including the chinlock going on. Gang finally comes in legally for the first time and squeezes Parsons’ head, which is called a chinlock here. Hart tells them to switch back, drawing Kevin in because he’s had it with this cheating.

Brooks slaps on another chinlock but this one doesn’t last as long, allowing Kevin to come in AGAIN without a tag. Some right hands stagger the illegal Gang (who has the word MOON on both legs) but he comes in a few seconds later to hit the lumbering forearms on Parsons. A missed knee knocks Gang down though and it’s the hot tag off to Kevin so house can be cleaned. Kevin gets the Claw on Gang but a slap to the face breaks it up.

Parsons DIVES over/onto the referee for a failed save attempt, allowing Gang to choke from the apron. In something you don’t hear that often, Hart is smart enough to order Gang to let go before it’s a DQ. Things settle back down with Kevin getting the Claw on Gang but everything breaks down again. Parsons is sent outside and Brooks grabs his chain. The ref is bumped for a few seconds and it’s a DQ at 12:58.

Rating: C. I know it was rather messy and it felt like a wild brawl, but that was the point here. Parsons and Kevin were out for revenge for Mike and it makes sense to have them want to take the two of them apart. The ending leaves things open for later, making this a rather nicely booked match all around. It’s not great, but it makes perfect sense with everything they were trying to do.

Mercer recaps the show to wrap it up.

Actually we even get some credits, which still feel weird on a wrestling show.

Overall Rating: C. I liked this one well enough and I already get the ideas for most of the stories they were pushing this time. That makes for a fun show, but the important thing here is how nice everything looks. You would never know this was in 1985 as the only promotion with this kind of production value was the WWF, and even that had just started with Saturday Night’s Main Event. Very entertaining show here and I had a good time.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 17, 2018
Location: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Renee Young, Corey Graves

It’s the night after TLC and really, nothing that happened last night is likely to matter. Tonight is ALL about Vince McMahon shaking that up and you can imagine the amount of talking that’s going to receive after the announcement is made. There’s a good chance that it’s going to be something like a Draft or the Superstar Shakeup, which isn’t likely to solve that many problems. Let’s get to it.

We waste no time with Vince coming out to open things up. He knows everyone is wondering what is going on with Monday Night Raw and tonight we’re going to find out. One of the reasons that Raw has been on the air for 25 years is they change with the times and despite one man’s brilliance and creativity, he can’t do it by himself anymore. He can do it without the fans…..and here’s Stephanie McMahon.

Before anything can be said though, here’s HHH, with Cole pointing out that he put NXT together. We’re still not done yet though as here’s Shane to complete the wrestling side of the family. The fans cheer for Shane but Stephanie gets to talk (of course), saying they haven’t been doing a good job of running their shows. They’ve let middle management run the company so tonight, they’re off to a fresh start. HHH: “The days of absentee management are over.” Starting tonight, they’re taking back Raw and Smackdown and it’s time for a lot of fresh things, such as faces, stars and matchups.

As of now, the fans are the authority. Vince says that as long as we give you more of what you want and less of what you don’t, WWE will always be then, now and forever. They seem to be done but here’s Baron Corbin, who is booed out of the building. Corbin says those were some great words, but the word that wasn’t mentioned was “fair”. What happened to him last night wasn’t fair, and that’s why we need to have a conversation.

Back from a break with Corbin in the ring with the bosses and the fans booing him even more. HHH: “If you keep doing that, it’s hard for him to speak.” You get the idea I’m sure. Corbin keeps getting booed even more, but he eventually gets to say that it’s not his fault the wrestlers aren’t responding to his motivational tactics.

Last night wasn’t fair because Braun Strowman wasn’t supposed to be there so he wasn’t prepared. HHH gets to the point and says Corbin wants his job back. Corbin says that’s exactly right but it’s a quadruple negative. Actually hang on, because Vince thinks they might all be wrong. Corbin can have a match right now and if he wins, he gets to be permanent GM. All he has to do is beat this man.

Baron Corbin vs. Kurt Angle

Heath Slater is guest referee and sweet goodness we’re lucky that Angle completely forgave Stephanie for ruining his life and job oh…..just a few months ago with no repercussions? Angle punches him down and we take an early break. Back with HHH saying that this is actually a handicap match.

Baron Corbin vs. Bobby Roode/Chad Gable/Bobby Roode/Kurt Angle

So it was just a practice run when they did this last night? Corbin tries to go after all of them to start and it goes as well as you would expect. An attempted escape doesn’t work and Slater fixes a turnbuckle while the beating is on. Cue Shane again to say that this is No DQ. Slater joins in and everyone grabs a chair to destroy Corbin even more. Everyone hits their finisher and Angle gets the pin at 9:05.

Rating: D. Well, it was slightly different than last night as there was no Finn Balor to get involved here, nor was there Strowman to stand on Corbin’s chest for the pin. This was the first half hour of the show being dedicated to the bosses and Corbin, and that’s been the biggest problem on Raw in recent weeks. This did nothing we didn’t see last night and after sitting through a four hour pay per view, that’s not a good start. There was no reason for this not to be a squash either, as Corbin should have been slaughtered in about thirty seconds, not the better part of ten minutes doing the same thing they did last night.

Post match the fans want tables so one gets brought in, with Corbin taking an Angle Slam through one.

Video on John Cena receiving the Muhammad Ali Legacy Award from Sports Illustrated.

Finn Balor vs. Dolph Ziggler

This match is so fresh that we haven’t even seen it in the last month! This is fallout from Ziggler interfering in last night’s Balor vs. Drew McIntyre match. Balor dropkicks him to the floor and we take an early break. Back with Balor hitting a basement dropkick but holding his hamstring. During the break, Ziggler hit a dropkick of his own to keep the score even. Ziggler gets two off a rollup and a reverse DDT is good for the same.

Balor hits the enziguri in the corner but Ziggler breaks up the Coup de Grace and sends him into the post. The Zig Zag gets two and here’s Drew McIntyre, with Ziggler diving onto him for some right hands. Balor flip dives onto McIntyre but gets caught with the Fameasser for two. Balor starts his comeback but McIntyre comes in to jump him for the DQ at 9:35.

Rating: D+. This didn’t have time to go anywhere with the break and the interference, but the inclusion of Ziggler sucked the life out of almost anything they could do. Since there’s no World Champion on Raw at the moment, McIntyre is stuck slumming it with these two, because….I can’t even bring myself to get into that rant again. Just set up the triple threat for the last Raw of the year already and let McIntyre crush them both. He won’t, but that’s where this should be going.

Post match McIntyre lays Ziggler out too.

Here’s Dean Ambrose, with the gas masked guards at his side. Corey: “There had to be some sort of big celebration in the Ambrose house last night.” Renee: “Of course there was but do you think I’m going to tell you about it?” Ambrose said you all should be bowing down to him because he did what he promised to do last night. Not too long ago Seth Rollins had two titles and now he has none. Dean isn’t done though and he’s going to destroy Rollins once and for all.

As for now though, Seth can come out here right now and tell Dean that he’s right to his face. There’s no Seth, so Dean makes a non-title open challenge for Rollins instead. There’s still no Seth, so let’s have an Open Challenge for the Intercontinental Title for anyone not named Seth Rollins.

Intercontinental Title: Dean Ambrose vs. Tyler Breeze

Ambrose is defending of course and this is indeed something different, after only an hour of waiting on anything fresh to happen. A running clothesline puts Dean on the floor and we take an early break. Back with Dean in control and stomping at the ribs before slapping on a chinlock. An enziguri (becoming way too popular around here) gives Breeze two and Dean misses a charge into the post to give Breeze another near fall. There’s the Beauty Shot and a high crossbody for two more. The Unprettier is broken up though and Dean hits Dirty Deeds for the pin at 7:45.

Rating: D+. It had a nice bit in the middle where Breeze got in some offense but this was another boring match and just a quick stop on the road to another Rollins vs. Ambrose match, which completely fits the “fresh” description on the show. After last night, I never need to see them fight again but you know we’re getting it several more times. Lucky us indeed.

Post match Ambrose calls Rollins out again and here he is, as one of the people in the gas masks. Now that might not make a lot of sense given what Dean offered him before the match, but I guess Rollins would rather get in a few shots than a match.

Shane is talking about fresh matches when Drake Maverick and the AOP come in. They want their rematch but Shane is tired of the required rematch clause (halle-freaking-lujah), especially since Baron Corbin set all this up in the first place. Instead, tonight the AOP can be in a four way match with the Lucha House Party, the Revival and the B Team for a future title shot.

A graphic shows us that Heavy Machinery, Lars Sullivan, Nikki Cross, Lacey Evans and EC3 are coming to the main roster.

Back from a break and all of the upcoming talents get videos.

Here are Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush, with the former sitting down hold a guitar. They talk about how sick Lashley is of songs, though hitting Elias with a guitar last night felt great. Therefore, here are some poses. Elias sneaks in with a guitar shot to Lashley’s back but he runs off as Lashley no sells the thing. This is another feud that needs to go far, far away.

Sami Zayn is coming back. No date given but SWEET.

AOP vs. Lucha House Party vs. B Team vs. Revival

One fall to a finish but the big story here: LUCHA HOUSE RULES ARE DONE! Dawson slaps Kalisto in the mask to start and even stops to mock the Lucha Dance. Kalisto DDTs both of the Revival but the AOP comes in to throw people around as we take a break. Back with Wilder holding Dorado in a Gory Stretch but stopping to dance again.

Dorado gets out and hits the Golden Rewind but Dallas tags himself in. Kalisto hits the springboard corkscrew crossbody to take Dallas down and it’s back to Dawson. Dallas runs him over and hits the hanging swinging neckbreaker for two with Wilder making the save. The AOP gets sent outside by Dawson and Dallas and it’s a Shatter Machine to finish Dallas at 10:12.

Rating: C. I’m perfectly fine with the new challengers and PLEASE tell me they get the titles at some point. They’ve been around for a year and a half now and barely gotten around the title picture, despite being one of the best teams WWE has had in years. This is long overdue, especially when the current champions are a thrown together team.

Rollins talks about last night being a disaster and everything falling apart. He heard everything the fans said last night and it’s time to set things right. That starts with getting rid of Dean Ambrose….and here’s Corbin to interrupt. Corbin blames Rollins for everything going wrong for him and mocks him for losing the title. Rollins puts him down with a right hand.

We look back at the opening segment.

Here’s Ronda Rousey for a chat. She talks about beating Nia Jax like she promised to do last night. Then there was what she did in the main event, when she shoved over a ladder, costing both Becky Lynch and Charlotte the title. She isn’t here to justify her action, but rather writing the next chapters in their stories. After giving the definition of a champ, Rousey lays out an open challenge for a title shot right now.

We cut to the gorilla position where the women are arguing over having their music played. Egads none of these women, or for that matter anyone, is this stupid. Stephanie comes in to say come with her. In the arena, Stephanie announces a gauntlet match for the title shot right now.

Gauntlet Match

The winner gets the title shot next week and there are eight entrants total. Alicia Fox and Bayley start things off with Fox getting two off a forearm and slapping on a chinlock. Bayley gets two of her own off a belly to back suplex and we take a break. Back with Bayley getting two off a sunset flip until Fox chops her down. Bayley tweaks her knee off a flip and gets kicked in the head, only to grab a crucifix to get rid of Fox at 7:57.

Dana Brooke is in third with an enziguri and a handspring elbow, followed by the bodyscissors. A chop block stays on the knee and Bayley can’t even be whipped across the ring. Ever the genius, Brooke grabs a chinlock instead of, maybe, the bad knee? Bayley fights up and hits a quick Bayley to Belly for the elimination at 10:38.

Back from another break (and a Kevin Owens return vignette, again with no date specified) with Mickie James charging into Bayley’s boot in the corner but grabbing a neckbreaker for two. The top rope Thesz press gives Mickie two and a sunset flip gives Bayley the same. Bayley snaps off a belly to back suplex but Mickie kicks her to the floor. Back in and Bayley’s knee gives out again but she’s fine enough to hit a middle rope crossbody. The top rope elbow gets two with James having to grab the rope for the break.

The Bayley to Belly is broken up so Bayley puts her on the apron instead. A kick to the knee slows Bayley down and the MickDT gets rid of Bayley at 24:16. Ember Moon is in fifth and Mickie kicks her down in a hurry. A quick comeback is cut off by Mickie tripping her face first onto the apron as we take another break. Back with Ember hitting a faceplant and firing off some kicks. A flapjack gives Mickie two but the top rope Thesz press is countered into a Codebreaker followed by the Eclipse to get rid of Mickie at 28:57.

Natalya is in sixth and Ember wastes no time in rolling her up for two. A cravate keeps Natalya in trouble until Ember misses a dive off the top and an exchange of rollups goes to Natalya, who gets a pin at 31:02. Ruby Riott is in seventh and we take another break. Back again with Ruby holding a choke until Natalya slams her down, followed by a double clothesline. A cravate keeps Ruby in trouble until Natalya fights up with a collection of suplexes. Ruby misses a middle rope backsplash and gets rolled up for the pin at 41:35.

Sasha Banks is in last with Corey accusing her of politicking her way to the final spot. Banks misses the Meteora but gets two off a DDT. We take another break and come back again with Natalya getting two off a basement dropkick. The discus lariat is good for the same and the Sharpshooter goes on. The big slow crawl to the ropes doesn’t quite work so Banks rolls Natalya into the corner for the break.

A half crab has Natalya in trouble before Banks realizes the obvious and switches over to the Bank Statement. That’s rolled through and Natalya gets a release German suplex to drop Banks on the back of her head. Banks gets two off the Meteora but runs into an Alleyoop to drop her on her face. The Sharpshooter goes on again and Banks taps at 52:59.

Rating: C-. We sat through all that to set up NATALYA for the big title shot? Good grief they’re really overestimating how much people care about her and this friendship with Rousey. I know it’s just a one off title match, but I don’t think they could have picked a less interesting opponent outside of Nia Jax and Tamina. I’m not looking forward to this one, but big points for setting up a title match by having someone win a match like this.

Post match Rousey comes in for the handshake and there’s no violence.

Next week: Rousey vs. Natalya, Balor vs. McIntyre vs. Ziggler, Elias vs. Lashley in a street fight, Rollins vs. Corbin, and Paul Heyman celebrates the holidays.

Natalya poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. I’m not sure on this one but we’ll get the important thing out of the way first: stuff happened here. After weeks of the big story being Baron Corbin, they only spent a half hour on him and that’s a big change of pace. There were some storyline advancements here and some fresh blood coming here will do the show some good.

At the same time though, look at how many stories are continuing from last week. We still have the Balor/Ziggler/McIntyre stuff, Rollins vs. Ambrose, Elias vs. Lashley and Corbin doing anything. While it’s nice to have some fresh stuff being brought in, it doesn’t do much good when the majority of the show is the same stuff that was boring in the first place.

Then there’s the big one: the promise of more McMahons. While I’ll take it over a Draft or another Superstar Shakeup which just rearranges the deck chairs (which aren’t on the Titanic), it doesn’t say much when the whole thing is all about the same bosses we’ve had before. I know they promised the lack of middle management and I’ll be nice and say that holds up until March until they change their minds and do the same stuff all over again. It isn’t exactly inspiring stuff, but that’s never stopped them before. I’m not exactly optimistic here, but at least these bosses are more interesting than Corbin so they’re doing something good.

Results

Bobby Roode/Chad Gable/Kurt Angle/Apollo Crews b. Baron Corbin – Angle Slam

Finn Balor b. Dolph Ziggler via DQ when Drew McIntyre interfered

Dean Ambrose b. Tyler Breeze – Dirty Deeds

Revival b. Lucha House Party, AOP and the B Team – Shatter Machine to Dallas

Natalya won a gauntlet match last eliminating Sasha Banks

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

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