IMG Credit: WWE

Survivor Series 1991
Date: November 27, 1991
Location: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Attendance: 17,500
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan

This show marks a change of pace from the Survivor Series formula and it was for the better. The fans saw little to no reason to buy a pay per view with nothing on the line, so giving them a traditional main event to look forward to. The rest of the show follows the normal formula though, and thankfully there are no eggs here. Let’s get to it.

We open with a clip from Superstars with Savage being tied up in the ropes as Jake made the cobra bite Savage’s arm. Piper immediately ran down from the broadcast booth to try to help. Liz came out screaming as well. This is when Savage was a commentator and retired but looking for reinstatement.

The key thing is he had been scheduled to be on the PPV as a captain against Jake’s team, but because of this, both captains were pulled off the show with three days’ notice as mentioned above. The actual match between the two of them would be a week later on a different PPV called Tuesday in Texas, which was another $20. It felt like a total ripoff because that’s exactly what it was.

Anyway back on Superstars, Savage can’t stand up because of the snake bite but he keeps trying to fight Jake. They finally get Savage on a stretcher and start wheeling him away but he falls off. Now we get to the unintentional comedy. Savage falls off the stretcher and Vince is freaking out on commentary. The camera cuts to a crying child in the crowd and Vince loses it, audibly cracking up on air and trying to talk about “complete chaos” while clearly laughing.

We get the announcement from WWF President Jack Tunney that Savage and Roberts won’t be allowed to wrestle at Survivor Series. This is translated as “HAHA WE GOT YOUR MONEY ALREADY!”

Gorilla and Bobby talk for a bit.

Team Ric Flair vs. Team Roddy Piper

Ric Flair, Ted DiBiase, The Mountie, The Warlord

Roddy Piper, Bret Hart, Davey Boy Smith, Virgil

It’s also back to the simple team names this year. Roddy was Flair’s first feud in the company and not only did you know the matches would be good, but the promos would be awesome too. Bret was feuding with Mountie over the Intercontinental Title, Smith was feuding with Warlord over who was stronger and Virgil was feuding with DiBiase because who else was he going to feud with?

Flair has the REAL World Title with him here, which is censored but if you know your titles, you can see a WWF Tag Team Title, which looks really weird if you’re in the arena (for clarification, the short version is Flair was NWA Champion, left the NWA, wasn’t paid back for the deposit he put down on the belt, brought it to the WWF, got sued, and couldn’t use the title in the angle they were doing anymore so they would substitute in another belt which was censored in storyline.)

Big reaction for Bret, who has finally split from Neidhart and is Intercontinental Champion as of Summerslam. DiBiase starts for his team against Piper, which is a pretty awesome match by itself. No managers are allowed at ringside this year but Sherri is there anyway. Flair sneaks in and blasts Piper in the back to give Ted an early advantage. Piper atomic drops Ted and Sherri comes in to choke him, which somehow isn’t a DQ. Piper kisses her and punches DiBiase to take over.

Sherri is sent to the back and Roddy brings in Smith. The good guys work over the arm of DiBiase with Virgil of all people getting the biggest pop. After all four go in they start going around again with all four getting in another set of shots on the arm. Bret stays in but misses a knee in the corner to put himself in trouble. They trade near falls before Bret takes Ted right back down by the arm.

DiBiase hiptosses him down and wisely tags in Flair. Bret starts with some of his favorite moves before tagging in Davey Boy to slingshot Flair into the corner. Piper wants in but Flair stops the tag. There’s the gorilla press to Flair and the tag to Piper, drawing a BIG pop from the crowd. Piper goes nuts with punches, knocking Flair to the floor for a Flair Flop.

Back inside and it’s off to Warlord who Piper wants to try a test of strength against. Piper is just playing though and brings in Smith for the big power match. Smith hits some shoulder blocks but misses a charge and it’s off to Mountie. Bret tags in and Mountie immediately hits the floor like a cowardly heel should. Instead here’s DiBiase who gets elbowed off the middle rope for two. Ted and Bret hit head to head and both guys are down.

Mountie is willing to get in there now but it’s back to Davey instead. Smith gorilla presses Mountie and pumps him about three times before slamming him down for no cover. Off to Flair who chops away at the Bulldog which doesn’t work at all. DiBiase and Flair try a double team but get double clotheslined instead. There’s the powerslam to Mountie but he’s not legal. Flair comes off the top with a shot to the back of Smith’s head for the pin and the elimination. Both guys were legal too so well done on keeping order.

Piper immediately charges in but Flair tags DiBiase back instead. Flair comes in to face a downed Piper but Ric is put in the Figure Four almost immediately. That goes nowhere so it’s off to Mountie vs. Virgil and Mountie can’t get a tag out from anyone. You know, because everyone is afraid of Virgil. Flair comes in and has zero luck so it’s DiBiase vs. Virgil again. Ted powerslams him down and it’s immediately back to the Warlord.

Virgil gets sent to the floor and Flair whips him into the steps, with Virgil doing an awful job of pretending to slam into them. The Warlord’s full nelson goes on but everything breaks down and Bret comes off the top to take out Warlord, giving the illegal Piper the pin to tie us up at 3-3. It’s Piper vs. DiBiase now before Virgil is quickly tagged in. Virgil slaps the Million Dollar Dream on DiBiase but Ted sends him into the buckle to escape.

Here’s Flair again with a belly to back suplex before it’s back to Mountie. Every remaining heel takes their shots on Virgil in what is likely the best possible option. Flair covers him for two and puts his feet on the ropes because that’s what Flair does. DiBiase comes in and ducks his head, only to get caught by a swinging neckbreaker. There’s the hot tag to Piper who no sells everything Flair throws at him. Everything breaks down and Flair is sent to the floor. That’s important because the referee disqualifies EVERYONE in the ring, but Flair was outside and is the sole survivor.

Rating: B. Gah this was going AWESOME until the pretty lame ending. Having Flair be the sole survivor is a smart move though as it makes the fans hate him even more. This was a GREAT setup though and was on pace to be a classic before the ending. To be fair though, at the pace they were going the match would have been an hour long if they were going to do a full version. Still though, what we got was very good.

Gene is on the platform and brings out Savage to talk about Jake, because we can’t have the match on this show so let’s talk about it instead. Savage talks about being bitten by the snake and being able to see and hear Liz crying, which is the worst thing Jake could do. He promises to be all over Jake like melted butter. Oh man stuff just got REAL. Liz comes out in what is presented as a bigger deal than it should be. As usual, she has nothing to say.

Gorilla thinks Tuesday in Texas may be on TV! I think he might be wrong here.

Team Mustafa vs. Team Slaughter

Colonel Mustafa, Berzerker, Skinner, Hercules

Sgt. Slaughter, Tito Santana, Jim Duggan, Texas Tornado

Skinner is an alligator wrestler from the Everglades and Berzerker is a crazy viking who tried to stab Undertaker with a sword. A lot of these guys are on their way out. Hercules would be in WCW by May, Tornado would job to the stars until leaving in July, as would Mustafa (Iron Sheik). The rest of the guys would do nothing of note for the rest of their time in the company.

Kerry looks high as a kite and almost falls off the apron getting into the ring. This is pretty recently after Slaughter’s face turn as he was a heel at Summerslam. This isn’t exactly the most talent laden match ever and the only feud is Slaughter vs. Mustafa due to their recent split.

Tito and Skinner start with Santana taking over with a headlock. There’s the flying forearm out of nowhere and Skinner hits the floor without a cover. Off to Berzerker vs. Tornado, which would work a lot better down in Dallas. Berzerker misses a dropkick and it’s off to Mustafa. After some very brief offense, Kerry tumbles to his corner and brings in Duggan to face Hercules, which took place in the first ever match at Survivor Series.

Duggan gets taken down by double and triple teaming and it’s off to Mustafa. He loads up his curled boots and does nothing with them. Duggan pounds away and backdrops Mustafa down before the hot tag to Slaughter. The big showdown is an atomic drop and a clothesline to Mustafa for the elimination.

Berzerker comes in with some clotheslines and a kick to Slaughter’s fat gut. A boot to Slaughter’s face puts him down and it’s off to Hercules for some two counts. Back to the viking who gets crotched on the top rope and kicked in the legs. Off to Duggan who clotheslines Berzerker to the floor, only to have Berzerker come back in for a backdrop back out to the floor. Tornado comes in and pounds away on him before it’s off to Hercules again.

Tito gets a blind tag and hits a forearm to the back of the head (El Paso Del Muerte) for the pin and the elimination. Skinner comes in as it’s 4-2. I don’t see this going well for Mustafa’s team. A blind tag brings in Slaughter who rolls up Skinner for the elimination. Slaughter whips Berzerker into Duggan’s clothesline for the elimination and the win.

Rating: F. The match was awful, it was never in doubt, and the biggest deal on the heel team was Skinner, who would get an Intercontinental Title shot soon after this. What a horrible match and one of the most worthless ones in the history of the show so far, which is covering quite a bit of ground. Nothing to see here at all.

Here’s Jake to plug Tuesday in Texas some more. To be fair, Jake saying “trust me” in that evil voice of his was amazing. Jake swears he didn’t know that the snake had venom in it still but making Liz cry excited him. God has told Jake that God doesn’t like Okerlund, so let’s blame everyone but Jake. I said he was awesome, not that he made sense. No reptiles are allowed at the match between Savage and Roberts. He wants to kiss Liz and that’s about it.

We recap Hogan vs. Undertaker. Flair confronted Hogan in the Funeral Parlor (Undertaker’s interview segment) and went off on him about hearing about Hogan for years. Now Flair is here and wants to know what Hogan is going to do about it. Hogan pulled off the shirt and Undertaker came out of a standing casket behind Hulk and hit him with the urn. Piper and Savage ran out of the broadcast booth with chairs but Undertaker literally swatted away Savage’s swing. Undertaker rips Hogan’s cross off ala Andre in 87 and leaves.

WWF World Title: Undertaker vs. Hulk Hogan

Undertaker is “undefeated” here, which means overseas tours and house shows don’t count because Tito Santana beat him in Spain and Warrior beat him on a bunch of house shows. Feeling out process to start with no one being able to get a real advantage. Undertaker shoulders Hogan and Hulk regroups a bit while Undertaker reaches to the urn. Back in and Undertaker chokes away in the corner in a shot you see in a lot of his video packages.

Bearer chokes Hogan a bit and Undertaker slams him. A big elbow misses and the place cheers loudly. Hulk pounds away but he can’t put him down. A slam doesn’t work, nor does an elbow to the head. Hogan clotheslines UNdertaker to the floor where the Dead Man lands on his feet and pulls Hogan outside. Back in and Undertaker chokes away some more and Bearer does the same. Undertaker starts smothering him as you can see the Hogan super fan, a guy who dressed up like Hulk (including yellow trunks) sitting in the front row and freaking out.

This hold goes on for a good while, which is just Undertaker having his hand on Hogan’s face and doing nothing else. By long I mean like two and a half minutes. When the whole match is only thirteen minutes, that’s quite the stretch. Hogan comes back with some shoulder blocks that don’t do much, only to haveUndertaker clothesline him down again. There’s the Tombstone but Hogan is up before a cover. He pounds away on Undertaker and knocks him down to one knee which is a very rare sight.

Hogan gets a good slam as Flair is on his way to the ring in his spiffy black and white robs. Hogan takes out Flair with a right hand and big boots Undertaker, only to have Bearer grab his leg. Undertaker loads up the Tombstone as Flair slides in a chair. The piledriver on the chair gives us a new champion and a decisive face pop for the Dead Man. Undertaker holding the title like it’s a coupon for a free coffee at a gas station is a nice touch.

Rating: D. Yeah this match completely sucked but we have a new champion and a reason to watch Flair vs. Hogan, which never happened for various reason. Hogan would beat Undertaker for the title at Tuesday in Texas six days later, but the title would be held up and decided in the Rumble, where Flair would win it and set up Wrestlemania. Bad match, but a BIG moment.

People come out to check on Hogan as Gorilla rips into Flair. Hogan takes a while to leave, likely to let the fans get over some of their shock.

Roddy is in the back and goes on a big rant against Tunney and Flair andUndertaker.

Flair and Perfect say they told us this would happen and now they’ve been proven right. Flair is the REAL World Champion now.

Intermission, which means we see a graphic for fifteen minutes. Seriously, there’s nothing other than a graphic and a countdown clock.

Gene recaps what’s happened so far in case someone ordered the PPV halfway through for some reason.

The Natural Disasters and IRS are ready for the Legion of Doom and Boss Man. That’s the main event. They’re not even hiding the ripping off of the fans anymore.

Legion of Doom and the Boss Man are ready too. Seriously there’s nothing else to say here. They say exactly what you would expect them to say and nothing else. Hawk gets ready to do the WHAT A RUSH line but as he loads it up, Sean interrupts him to say Gene is with Jack Tunney. Hawk gives him a look that would stop a tank and says his catchphrase, then lets Sean throw it to Gene.

Tunney announces Hogan vs. Undertaker II at Tuesday in Texas. He’ll be at ringside as well, driving the boredom levels shoot through the roof, if that’s even possible.

Team Nasty Boys vs. Team Rockers

Nasty Boys, Beverly Brothers

Rockers, Bushwhackers

This is right before the Rockers split and they’re already having issues. This is regular rules, which means individual eliminations and not one loss means both team members are gone. Butch and Knobbs (Brian Knobbs of the Nasty Boys along with Jerry Sags) get things going as Gorilla and Bobby talk about Hogan vs. Undertaker II. Butch hits a running knee lift and it’s off to Luke. Luke and Butch take over on the Nasty Boys with a pair of double clotheslines.

The Beverly Brothers come in and do about as well as Knobbs and Sags with both Brothers taking a Battering Ram. The Rockers double dropkick the Nasty Boys and the good guys have cleared the ring. It’s Shawn vs. Beau Beverly (the other is Blake) now as the announcers debate which guy on either team is the brains. A backbreaker puts Shawn down and it’s back to Knobbs. Luke comes in and avoids a splash in the corner but whacks his arms too much, allowing Knobbs to hit a middle rope clothesline for the elimination.

Off to Shawn vs. Sags with Jerry suplexing him down. Gorilla talks about how tonight will culminate at Tuesday in Texas. Some annoying fan stands up and poses for the camera so the shots keep cutting away a lot. The Rockers work on Sags’ arm before it’s off to Blake. Gorilla somehow can’t tell the Rockers apart, even though they pretty much look nothing alike and have been together for years now.

A superkick puts Blake down but he comes back with knees in the corner. Marty comes off the middle rope and shoves the referee for no apparent reason. It doesn’t go anywhere so I guess it was a mistake. Off to Beau who doesn’t do much other than allow a tag to Butch who cleans house. The Beverlies double team him with a backdrop into a facejam for the pin and the elimination.

It’s Nasty Boys/Beverly Brothers vs. Rockers now with Marty coming in again. Marty monkey flips and hurricanranas Beau down for two as Heenan and Gorilla trade statements of excitement. An enziguri puts Beau down again and it’s off to an armbar. It’s also off to Shawn, who doesn’t do as well as you would expect against one of the Beverly Brothers. Off to Blake who jumps over Beau and lands on Shawn’s back in a move later used by the World’s Greatest Tag Team.

Out of nowhere Shawn grabs a backslide on Beau for the pin to make it 3-1. Sags is in next as Gorilla thinks Marty should reach further for a tag. Even though the Rockers would split less than a month later, it wasn’t clear yet who would have gotten the super push. The Nasty Boys head to the floor and Shawn clotheslines Sags off the apron and superkicks Knobbs down. Back in and Sags takes over again. Marty’s eyes are just gone and he looks awful.

Blake comes in again and gets kicked in the face, allowing for a falling tag to Marty. A big jumping back elbow takes Knobbs down and a snapmare gets two. Knobbs takes Jannetty down again and Heenan talks about Tuesday in Texas. Off to Sags with a powerslam and a belly to back suplex before it’s back to Knobbs. Marty gets his knees up to stop a middle rope splash and there’s the tag to Shawn. Everything breaks down and Marty swings Sags’ feet into Shawn’s face, resulting in Knobbs rolling Michaels up for the pin.

That leaves us with Marty vs. Blake and the Nastys. Shawn freaks out on him before he leaves too to even further tease the tension. Marty starts with Knobbs and hits a middle rope bulldog but Jerry takes him down almost immediately and knocks him to the floor. A powerslam from Blake puts Marty down and the Nastys head to the floor. Jannetty dives on both of them and slams Blake’s face into the mat. Marty hooks a terrible looking small package on Sags but Knobbs rolls them over to give Jerry the final eliminating pin.

Rating: D. Man alive this was a long match. That’s the problem the rest of this show has created: there’s nothing else worth watching for the rest of the night and now they’re just filling in time to say that you’re getting a PPV that means something, when really you need to see the sequel to get the full thing.

Gorilla and Bobby plug Tuesday in Texas again.

Legion of Doom/Big Boss Man vs. IRS/Natural Disasters

This is your main event people. Let that sink in for a minute. The LOD are the Tag Team Champions and IRS (Irwin R. Schyster, a tax auditor) and Boss Man are having a worthless midcard feud. Boss Man and IRS start things off with the tax man getting thrown all over the place. Off to Animal vs. Earthquake which wakes the crowd up a bit.

They collide and Animal’s cross body is caught in a backbreaker in an impressive display of strength from Earthquake. Back to IRS to face Hawk with the latter working on the arm. Typhoon gets the tag, only to have IRS thrown at him by Hawk. Off to Earthquake who carries Hawk to the heel corner. IRS and Boss Man come in again and it’s a briefcase shot to Boss Man’s head for the elimination.

It’s Typhoon vs. Animal now and the Disasters double team Animal in the corner. Earthquake suplexes him down as Monsoon talks about Bobo Brazil. IRS hits a top rope right hand for two and Typhoon puts on a bearhug. Animal escapes and hits a clothesline before tagging in Hawk. IRS misses a briefcase shot to the head and hits Typhoon by mistake, giving Hawk the easy pin.

Earthquake wants to fight IRS now but walks off with Typhoon instead, making it the LOD vs. IRS. Hawk powerslams IRS down but a charge goes shoulder first into the post. Hawk gets sent face first into the steps as we continue to fill time by having IRS look like he has a chance. We hit the chinlock as the announcers talk about Thanksgiving dinner. A not very hot tag brings in Animal who cleans whatever is left in the house. IRS tries to walk out but runs into Boss Man in the aisle. Back in and Hawk hits a top rope clothesline for the win.

Rating: D+. We go from Hogan vs. Andre II to this in five years? That should give you a good idea as to what you’ve got going on with this show. The match was nothing and there was no reason to get excited about it, because the whole reason the match was happening had been postponed to Tuesday. In Texas.

Hogan won’t talk to the cameras about what happened.

Gene is in the bowels of the building with Bearer and Undertaker. Hogan will rest in peace. In Texas. They look in a casket to end the show.

Overall Rating: D-. Let’s take a look at what we had on this show: a really good opener, a horrible second match, a bad yet historic third match, a bad fourth match, and a worthless fifth match. This is all interspersed with a bunch of commercials for Tuesday in Texas, which is possibly the biggest bait and switch in company history. This show made me mad because it’s a big flip off to the fans, and that’s not acceptable. Watch the opener and that’s about it.

Ratings Comparison

Team Flair vs. Team Piper

Original: A-

Redo: B

Team Slaughter vs. Team Mustafa

Original: F

Redo: F

Undertaker vs. Hulk Hogan

Original: C-

Redo: D

Team Nasty Boys vs. Team Rockers

Original: D

Redo: D

Legion of Doom/Big Boss Man vs. IRS/Natural Disasters

Original: D

Redo: D+

Overall Rating:

Original: D+

Redo: D-

A little worse this time, but the same problems still plague this show. Screw you Vince.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/11/10/history-of-survivor-series-count-up-1991-here-lies-hogan/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-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
Date: October 24, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

It’s a big night this time around as Aleister Black now knows who attacked him. Therefore, it’s highly likely that we find out tonight too, which should be a heck of a moment. There are several suspects out there and a lot of them are strong possibilities. Other than that though, it’s time to get ready for the next Takeover. Let’s get to it.

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

Earlier today, William Regal assigned security to have Black see him before getting inside.

Opening sequence.

Here’s the Undisputed Era to get things going. Bobby Fish is officially back and that’s something everyone should fear. Just as the War Raiders. The Undisputed Era is NXT, which brings Cole to Ricochet, who still has his property. A few weeks back, Ricochet beat Pete Dunne to retain the North American Title in a triple threat match but didn’t pin Cole, because Ricochet can’t do it. Cue EC3 to interrupt because he sees Cole as trying to sound impressive because the team is scared. Cole cuts off the catchphrase with a SHUT UP EC3 and a match is made.

Adam Cole vs. EC3

Cole gets aggressive to start and hammers away in the corner but EC3 punches him outside without too much effort. A superkick slows EC3 down on the way back in though and a swinging neckbreaker keeps him down. Cole grabs a front facelock and gets two off the fireman’s carry neckbreaker. The facelock goes on again as Fish orders the referee to ask him. EC3 finally fights up and snaps off a German suplex but the Era offers a distraction. Cole’s superkick looks to set up the Last Shot but EC3 is up with a clothesline. That’s not enough or Cole though as EC3 grabs a rollup for the pin at 6:56.

Rating: C-. Kind of a dull match here but that’s been the case for a lot of EC3’s stuff. He looks and talks well but once the bell rings, he’s only so interesting. Cole can have a great match with the right opponent, though it’s clear that EC3 doesn’t fit in there. It also doesn’t help that EC3 was kind of thrown into this match, as the Era already has enough enemies.

Post match the beatdown is on, with a High/Low to EC3 setting up the Last Shot. Fish crushes the leg with a chair. Fans: “THANK YOU BOBBY!”

Nikki Cross warns security, telling them that he’s coming. Vic: “Who does she mean?” Do they write these lines to try and sound as dumb as possible?

Aaliyah vs. Mia Yim

This is Mia’s first NXT match in four years and first as a member of the roster. Aaliyah snaps her throat first across the top and puts on an early chinlock, followed by the right hands to the head. The second chinlock goes on so Mia drives her back first into the corner for the break. Some clotheslines and a dropkick put Aaliyah in the corner for a Cannonball. Soul Food is good for the pin on Aaliyah at 3:39.

Rating: D+. I’m not as big on Yim as some people but it makes sense to bring her in. She was one of the most popular stars in the Mae Young Classic and she has more than enough of a resume outside of WWE. Aaliyah is a good first win for her as it gets her feet wet, which I’m sure will set her up for something down the road.

Bianca Belair demands that Regal give her a title shot. With Bianca gone, Regal says he doesn’t know what Nikki said to Black last week but….here’s the Era to interrupt. With Kyle O’Reilly talking to himself, Cole tells Regal to get his act together. Regal says it’s the other way around, because next week the War Raiders will face Fish and Cole.

We see the Roman Reigns segment from Raw.

Video on Lacey Evans.

Video on Kairi Sane vs. Shayna Baszler. I’d assume they had to cut something for the sake of that Reigns segment and it’s throwing things off a bit. This is a lot of videos in a row.

Justin Xavier vs. Kassius Ohno

Xavier’s shoulder bounces off of Ohno but an elbow works a bit better. That’s fine with Ohno, who hits a heck of a big boot. A fireman’s carry slam sets up a running legdrop and another running boot cuts Xavier off. Back to back backsplashes set up the rolling elbow for the pin at 3:05.

Rating: D. Just a squash to set up Ohno to face Matt Riddle at the next Takeover. Ohno is the perfect choice for something like that as Ohno is one of the few guys guaranteed to have at least a passable match. He’s also still enough of a name that beating him means something and they’ve set up a nice little story for the debut.

Post match Nikki comes out to say he’s coming. Nigel says it’s clearly Black (meaning it’s not) and wonders who he’s coming for.

Matt Riddle makes his in-ring debut next week.

Here’s Regal to announce the NXT Title match at Takeover. This brings out Tommaso Ciampa, who tells Regal not to stare at the title. If Regal has some announcement, go ahead with it so here’s Velveteen Dream to interrupt. Dream says the WarGames fans want an experience so Regal needs to say his name. Now it’s Lars Sullivan interrupting, saying they need to be mindful of where they are. He recommends they leave his territory because the NXT Title belongs to them.

Dream understands that Lars thinks of himself as a nightmare, but when you speak to the Dream, wear some pants. Lars grabs him but here’s Cross to point to the back. We cut to said back where Black is kicking everyone he can find. Black comes into the arena and kicks Sullivan but want to know where HE is. Regal doesn’t know but Johnny Gargano comes in and lays Black out. Gargano: “I’m right here.”

It wasn’t the biggest secret in the world, but that was a really effective reveal. The fans got very quiet when Gargano attacked and that’s the entire point. Gargano was a prime suspect due to never actually denying what happened and suddenly being his old self again, which felt rather out of place for NXT storytelling. This can set him up for a long heel run, possibly even teaming with Ciampa again, before he finally becomes NXT Champion at some point down the line. Very well done here.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling wasn’t great here but really, none of that means much of anything as this was ALL about the big ending. Black vs. Gargano, especially a freshly heel Gargano, should be a heck of a fight as Takeover starts to look even better. This show took some steps towards the show and I’m looking forward to seeing how we get there. The reveal was the best part of the show and it’s all that really mattered.

Results

EC3 b. Adam Cole – Rollup

Mia Yim b. Aaliyah – Soul Food

Kassius Ohno b. Justin Xavier – Rolling elbow

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-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: October 24, 2018
Location: Cambridge Corn Exchange, Cambridge, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

It’s week two and there’s a good chance we’ll be seeing a lot of new faces again this time around. Last week was mainly about introducing the top stars and some of them might be back this time around. I liked the first week a bit more than I was expecting, but it’s hard to say where things go from here. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Ligero vs. Mike Hitchman

Ligero looks like a luchador (complete with horned mask) and Hitchman is a rather hideous man called the Wild Boar. Ligero kicks him down to start and mostly misses a standing moonsault for two. Hitchman sends him to the apron but Ligero bounces right back in for a dropkick. That earns him a whip into the corner for a good looking running shoulder into the corner.

An exploder suplex sets up a neck crank but Ligero comes up with some running clotheslines. A running big boot gets two on Hitchman but he’s right back with a fireman’s carry faceplant. Hitchman hits a running backsplash to the back and another one in the corner for two more as Ligero is in big trouble. The fans get behind Ligero as he avoids a charge in the corner and hits a springboard tornado DDT for the pin at 4:49.

Rating: C. Not too bad at all here with the power vs. speed formula, which is one of the most tried and true ideas in wrestling. Every promotion can use a smaller guy like Ligero and the fans certainly took to him early. Hitchman didn’t stand out all that much, but at least the match was entertaining while it lasted.

Video on Dakota Kai.

Video on Killer Kelly.

Dakota Kai vs. Killer Kelly

Both of them like to kick. Kai starts in with the kicks but gets caught with a jawbreaker to slow her down. Kelly rains down the right hands and grabs a surfboard with a dragon sleeper to bend Kai in a few painful looking directions. Since Kai is about to break, Kelly lets her go and hits a basement dropkick for two more. A release German suplex keeps Kai in trouble but she’s right back up with some kicks to the face. The running kick in the corner is followed by a running seated version and a somewhat botched sunset flip Backstabber (a hard move to be fair) finishes Kelly at 4:11.

Rating: C-. The sloppiness hurt this one a good bit but at least Kai won. She could be a star in the Bayley sense, though that didn’t quite work in NXT. Maybe the weaker talent pool around here will serve her better, but she’s definitely got something. The kicks looked good as always and Kelly looked better than she did in the Mae Young Classic.

Post match Kai says she wants the NXT UK Women’s Title.

We look at Zack Gibson winning the UK Title Tournament over the summer.

Video on Eddie Dennis, who knew Mark Haskins and Pete Dunne when they were kids. He became a school principal and isn’t happy with their success. This guy could be interesting.

Here’s Gibson for a chat. He’s Liverpool’s #1 and that’s soon to be the world’s #1, as well as NXT UK’s #1. At the Royal Albert Hall, he beat three men in a row and won the tournament. Then the next night, he fought Pete Dunne, though the fans aren’t impressed. Gibson wants Dunne right now because the Royal Albert Hall fans weren’t fair to him over the summer.

The fans chant something at him so Gibson rants about Noam Dar getting a title shot with weeks to prepare but he failed anyway. Gibson is the kind of guy you can build a brand around and if you look up Dar, all you’ll see is someone doing a bunch of stupid poses. Cue Dar for a fight but GM Johnny Saint comes out to tell Gibson to come to the office RIGHT NOW. Gibson looks scared, which is the point of a good boss.

Video on Ashton Smith, who will do anything he has to do to win.

Travis Banks is coming for the Coffey Brothers, who attacked him in the Royal Albert Hall.

Ashton Smith vs. Tucker

Smith knocks him down for two to start so Tucker comes back with some superkicks to take over. A running headbutt drops Smith again and they hit a pinfall reversal sequence. Tucker begs off in the corner but comes out with some shots to the head and a suplex for two. The Super Duper Kick doesn’t work so Smith sends him into the corner for some running hip shots. The ripcord DDT (Ash Cloud) is good for the pin on Tucker at 4:16.

Rating: C. I think I remember liking Smith back in the summer and I liked him again here. He has a good look and moves well in the ring so I can easily see why they’re giving him a spot here. Tucker…I’m still not sure. The name doesn’t do him any favors but his in-ring stuff is fine enough. Nice little match here as they’re keeping things short and sweet this week.

Video on Danny Burch, who debuts next week.

Also next week: Gibson vs. Dar.

Wolfgang vs. Tyler Bate

Wolfgang hasn’t impressed me much so far but maybe this will be better. Feeling out process to start with Wolfgang taking him up to the ropes for a howl. The much smaller Bate gets sat on the apron as the fans call Bate (I think?) a big strong boy. Bate wants a test of strength but gets taken down, only to spin out and nip up for a dropkick. Wolfgang slips out of an airplane spin attempt and starts in on the ribs.

Some stomps set up a waistlock into a bearhug but Bate punches his way out. A middle rope elbow to the jaw sets up Bate’s bouncing off the ropes into the clotheslines. Three in a row finally put Wolfgang on one knee and Bate is able to do the airplane spin. The running shooting star gets two but the Tyler Driver 97 is broken up. Wolfgang flips him over with a release German suplex and gets two off a spear. The Howling (Swanton) misses and the Tyler Driver 97 finishes Wolfgang at 10:26.

Rating: C-. Bate was trying here but he needed someone better than Wolfgang. I know he’s a bigger guy, but that’s about all Wolfgang has going for him. I’ve seen him a few times now and nothing he’s done has really impressed me. Bate is the kind of guy who should be on the main roster one day and when you consider how young he still is, it’s downright impressive.

Overall Rating: C. There isn’t much to say about these shows, but that’s how the early episodes should be. You need to set these things up over the course of a few weeks so that the stories have more of an impact. They’ve done a good job of establishing some basic characters though and that’s the important thing so far. I’m still not sure that this show really needs to be there, but at least they’re doing an acceptable job so far.

Results

Ligero b. Mike Hitchman – Springboard tornado DDT

Dakota Kai b. Killer Kelly – Code Red Backstabber

Ashton Smith b. Tucker – Ash Cloud

Tyler Bate b. Wolfgang – Tyler Driver 97

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: October 23, 2018
Location: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey
Commentators: Corey Graves, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

It’s the go home show for Evolution and one of the last shows before Crown Jewel, which may or may not still take place in Saudi Arabia. The big match this week is a rematch of last week’s 1000^th episode as AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan team up to face the Usos. Other than that, expect a lot of not saying where next week’s show will be taking place. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s New Day to open things up, with Big E. saying “don’t you dare be shower.” I guess Newark is a bathtub town. New Day talks about losing their Tag Team Titles and that lowered the bar. What Kofi doesn’t get is the Big Show involvement though. He helped them, so is he the Bar tender? Big Show has flipped more times than a flapjack so tonight Kofi wants some payback. Well here we go.

Kofi Kingston vs. Sheamus

Show and Cesaro are at ringside too….and hang on a second as we have a change of pace.

Kofi Kingston vs. Cesaro

Or not again.

Kofi Kingston vs. Big Show

Show throws him around to start and hits a trio of chokeslams. The fourth is loaded up but New Day and the Bar come in for the no contest at 1:30.

Post match New Day gets wrecked with a chokeslam to Big E. and a KO to Woods.

We see the Roman Reigns announcement from last night.

The fans give him a THANK YOU ROMAN chant.

Usos vs. AJ Styles/Daniel Bryan

Rematch from last week. Bryan headlocks Jimmy to start but a blind tag brings in Jey, who is clotheslined to the floor. AJ knocks Jimmy out and there are the stereo dives to drop the Usos again. Back from a break with Bryan fighting out of a chinlock until they both hit crossbodies for a double knockdown. The hot tag brings in AJ and everything breaks down. Jey gets caught in the Calf Crusher but Jimmy makes a save. The Phenomenal Forearm almost hits Bryan but AJ pulls up at the last second. Instead though, the Pele hits Bryan, allowing Jey to hit a superkick into the Superfly Splash to finish AJ at 7:46.

Rating: C. I’m liking the story they have here and it’s about as good of an idea as you can have to set up the title match in Saudi Arabia. They don’t have anything personal between them so building something up makes as much sense as anything else. Also, it’s not like they’re losing to some thrown together team as the Usos are one of the best and most successful teams of this era. Now just let us get something new for the Usos.

Video on the Bella Twins turning on Ronda Rousey.

Post break AJ says it was an accident but Bryan accuses his nose of growing. Eventually it turns into the Too Sweet sign.

On Saturday, Charlotte was giving a speech at the Performance Center, talking about respect. She talked about how she’s grown up in the last few months and being ready for the first Last Woman Standing match when Becky Lynch came in. Becky is the one they should really be listening to and the fight was on. The rookies break it up.

Backstage, Charlotte is near tears as she talks about Becky going over the line at the Performance Center. At Evolution, she’ll win the title back and be standing over both an opponent and a friend who lost her way.

Rusev vs. Aiden English

Aiden sings about how Lana could have had a long Aiden Night instead of a Rusev Day. The chase is on and Aiden is thrown into a variety of things. Back in and Aiden hits a swinging neckbreaker but stops to yell at Lana. That means a Machka Kick and the Accolade for the tap at 1:24.

Here’s Miz for MizTV. Miz talks about the World Cup and how he’s ready to become the best in the world. That brings him to his guest this week: the man who defeated Shinsuke Nakamura last week, Rey Mysterio. Miz accuses him of being stuck in the 90s because people are no longer interested in the plucky underdog. It’s all about the bigger stars like him, who has been here becoming a must see man while Mysterio has been on hiatus.

Miz will be winning the Smackdown bracket and then the rest of the tournament while Mysterio is disappointed. Mysterio already is disappointed because he was supposed to be on TruthTV. Miz talks about how that show was canceled but Mysterio wants to fight now. That earns him a cheap shot but Rey fights back and almost hits the 619.

The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio

Joined in progress with Rey speeding things up and running Miz over without much effort. A missed charge in the corner lets Miz get in a few shots of his own but he has to avoid the 619. Miz gets two off the short DDT and we take a break. Back with Miz hitting the YES Kicks and taking Rey up for a super Skull Crushing Finale. That’s reversed into a super victory roll and the springboard seated senton has Miz in more trouble. The Reality Check gives Miz two but the Skull Crushing Finale is broken up. Rey hits a quick 619 into the springboard splash for the pin at 9:05.

Rating: C. Mysterio was looking better here and while I’m not interested at all in the World Cup, it’s nice to have the field be as stacked as it currently is. Let us see what these people can do when they’re given the chance, which will hopefully be in front of a crowd that actually cares this time around.

Asuka/Naomi vs. Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville

Actually hang on as here are the Iiconics to say Newark sucks and they’ll win. Lana comes out to say something similar but Carmella cuts her off. It’s time for a dance break but Zelina Vega comes in to throw her inside. The fight is on with Vega clearing the ring…expect for Asuka, who kicks her in the head. No match.

Evolution rundown.

Here’s Shane McMahon for a chat about the World Cup. He applauds everyone at Evolution before moving on to the World Cup. On the words Best in the World, the CM Punk chants begin with Shane saying he’s not in the tournament. Shane thinks someone from Smackdown will win and we hear the entrants involved. With that said, it’s main event time. Were they running two minutes short or something?

Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy

This is billed as their first match in a month. Jeff kicks away to start but gets sent outside for a ram into the steps. Back in and a chinlock sets up one of the weakest chinlocks I can ever remember to keep Jeff down. Orton ties him in the Tree of Woe for some kicks to the chest and the pulling of the ear, followed by a drop onto the announcers’ table.

Jeff fights up and hits the legdrop between the legs for two, followed by the Whisper in the Wind for the same. The Twisting Stunner connects but Orton rolls away before the Swanton. Instead Hardy misses one to the floor and gets brought back inside for the RKO to give Orton the pin at 8:48.

Rating: D+. I just can’t get into this whole World Cup thing. Maybe it’s the leftover feelings from how worthless the Greatest Royal Rumble was, but these things just feel so unimportant and so boring that it’s crippling any show it’s on. At least with Raw there’s the slightly amusing Angle vs. Corbin feud, but on here it’s just two guys having a match that isn’t likely to have anything to do with the tournament itself. That’s a very Money in the Bank style feeling and I could go without it.

Overall Rating: D. This show wasn’t bad, but it was lifeless and that’s even worse. There’s no hiding the fact that Crown Jewel isn’t something people want to see and while the build for Evolution has been better, it’s still not exactly an interesting show. Hopefully once Crown Jewel is over, they cut out this promoting multiple shows at the same time nonsense. It hasn’t worked, but there’s a chance that it’s just trying to promote these specific shows more than anything else.

Results

Kofi Kingston vs. Big Show went to a no contest when New Day and the Bar interfered

Usos b. AJ Styles/Daniel Bryan – Superfly Splash to Styles

Rusev b. Aiden English – Accolade

Rey Mysterio b. The Miz – Springboard splash

Randy Orton b. Jeff Hardy – RKO

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-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: October 22, 2018
Location: Dunkin Donuts Center, Providence, Rhode Island
Commentators: Corey Graves, Renee Young, Michael Cole

It’s the go home show for Evolution so expect a lot of hearing about Nikki Bella vs. Ronda Rousey, which somehow is the highest profile match we can have on what was supposed to be a top level show. Other than that we have Crown Jewel next week, even though we’re not allowed to hear where the show is taking place. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Roman Reigns to say that he can’t fight every day. He’s been wrestling for eleven years and now it’s back. Therefore he has to vacate the title and seek treatment. He was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 22 years old and now he has to do it again. Reigns was done with football but the WWE gave him a chance. Whether it was cheering or booing, the fans always reacted to him and that’s what matters most. The best thing for him to do right now is to go home and focus on his family and his health.

This is NOT a retirement speech because he’s coming back to this ring when he’s healthy again. When he comes back, it’s not about titles but about a purpose. He wants to show his family and friends that when live throws a curve ball at him, he crowds the plate and swings for the fences. Reigns leaves the title in the ring and walks away, only to be greeted by Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose on the stage for a big hug and one more Shield pose.

The announcers are nearly in tears talking about what happened and wish Reigns the best.

Finn Balor vs. Bobby Lashley

Lio Rush hypes Lashley up as he throws Balor around. Balor knocks Lashley to the floor and chases after Rush, only to get run over by Lashley as we take a break. Back with Balor caught in a nerve hold as Rush keeps up the LASHLEY chants. Finn fights up but has to escape the delayed vertical suplex. The Sling blade looks to set up the Coup de Grace but Lashley pops up and blasts him with a clothesline. Balor is fine enough to grab a rollup for the fast pin at 8:29.

Rating: C-. This didn’t have time to go anywhere and it’s not like the fans cared about it after what opened the show. I know it’s hard to think about the title picture at the moment but Reigns leaving is going to open the door for a lot of new names in the main event picture. Balor could be one of them and a clean win here might suggest that being the case.

The announcers talk about the future of the Universal Title. Nothing has been determined yet but we might be getting updates throughout the night.

We look back at Drew McIntyre hitting the Claymore on Braun Strowman last week.

Dolph Ziggler and McIntyre say they have to look over their shoulders every night. McIntyre says when Strowman got done with Ziggler, he was coming for him so it was attacking first. After tonight, Ziggler won’t have to worry about a thing. McIntyre leaves to go monster hunting.

Sasha Banks vs. Ruby Riott

Preview of the six woman tag at Evolution. The early Riott Squad distraction lets Ruby beat Banks down from behind and we take an early break with Banks in trouble. Back with Banks getting elbowed in the face for two but sending Ruby into the buckle to get a breather. The right hands set up the double knees in the corner, followed by the middle rope Meteora. The Bank Statement goes on and draws Sarah Logan in, only to have Bayley make the save. That’s enough of a distraction for Ruby to send her into the corner, setting up the Riott Kick for the pin at 8:44.

Rating: D+. Nothing to see here, though again there’s only so much energy you can have all night long. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it and that’s making it hard to focus on the show. For a setup for the six woman tag, this was perfectly acceptable, even if this story has been going on for what feels like ever.

We see the Undertaker and Kane’s promo from last week.

Nia Jax says she’ll win the battle royal.

Here’s DX for a chat. They talk about being afraid of things but neither of them are scared of anything. Shawn: “Ain’t neither of us running for Mayor!” The other word running around has been nostalgia, which Shawn hoped was just a Greek word for “new merch”. It’s really a polite way of saying old. But then again, the #1 movie at the box office came out 40 years ago and two weeks ago, they sold out a 70,000 person stadium. HHH: “Maybe old is just another way of saying “we’re better than you””.

I’ll let you make your own jokes and stick with HHH saying the DX logo has been around for twenty two years. HHH talks about how there’s another X that says the future is better too. Shawn: “And we’re running that too!” They’re not coming to Crown Jewel to make you laugh, but to hand you a beating. Shawn loads up the catchphrase but some electrical noises go off….followed by a gong.

Undertaker and Kane appear on the screen, saying pride goes before destruction. DX can bring their delusions and try to retrieve their lost respect. They’ll unleash their utter contempt because Shawn can’t outrun the reaper or survive the Brothers of Destruction. The Brothers will own their souls for eternity and torment them in the deepest pits. They pour dirt into a grave. On a show where the Universal Champion says he has leukemia. And before they go to a country that is in the headlines for murdering a journalist.

We see the Reigns promo again.

Wrestlers have sent out tweets to Reigns.

There will be a new champion crowned at Crown Jewel when Strowman faces Brock Lesnar in a one on one title match.

We look back at the Bella Twins/Ronda Rousey segment from last week.

Here’s a somewhat shaken up Paul Heyman for a chat. His thoughts and prayers are with Reigns and he’s proud to have been in a locker room with that much pride for their friend. Tonight, Reigns was a man who sacrificed what he loved because he couldn’t be the Universal Champion. When you’re Universal Champion, you’ve earned the right to have people point at you and say you’re the best. Until 8:05pm EST tonight, we had the right to brag that the Universal Champion was the best in the world.

But now, no one is the champion so we need to find a new best in the world. There is only one person worthy of being champion and it certainly isn’t Braun Strowman. The only person who deserves to be walking into the Octagon as the Universal Champion is Brock Lesnar, and Strowman isn’t in his league. Cue Strowman and reality sets in quickly. Strowman says he’s going to bring the title back to Raw and when Reigns gets back from beating leukemia, he’s the first man in line for a title shot. For now though, Lesnar is going to get these hands. Strowman goes to leave and walks into the Claymore from McIntyre.

Post break Ziggler praises McIntyre, who says he did what most of the roster won’t do. He’s a grown man who doesn’t check under his bed for monsters. When Strowman shakes the cobwebs clear, he’ll realize that he needed them. Tonight, they defend the Tag Team Titles.

Here’s Elias to play a little guitar. Before he gets into the song about Apollo Crews though, here’s Apollo to cut him off.

Apollo Crews vs. Elias

Crews dropkicks him to the floor to start and hits a moonsault off the apron as we take a break. Back with Elias holding a chinlock for a rather long while until Crews powers up. The jumping clothesline drops Elias and the standing shooting star press gets two. A fall away slam into a Samoan drop is good for the same but Elias grabs the rope to avoid the toss powerbomb. The jumping knee to the face sets up Drift Away to finish Apollo at 8:00.

Rating: D. Well so much for Crews. I’m still not sure what the point is in having Elias out there for these nothing matches over and over, but at least they’re doing something with him and keeping him in front of the crowd. That’s certainly better than having him sit on the bench for weeks at a time and letting the fans forget about him. Still though, give him a push already.

Kurt Angle talks about how tough the World Cup of Wrestling is going to be. He talks about (as in reads cue cards about) all of his possible opponents with highlight packages of all seven of them. Angle has done a lot of things, but now he has the chance to be the best in the world. On this one night, he can do it all again.

Back from a break and here’s Elias to try the song again. This time it’s Baron Corbin interrupting, saying it’s his job to keep the show moving. Stephanie McMahon has sent him out here for something far more important than Elias playing his little guitar. He better quit staring at Corbin too, because if Stephanie didn’t like him, Elias would be fired.

Elias says he was in his own little world there for a second and writing a song in his head that he’s going to sing right now. The new song is about how Corbin is a coward and a puppet but Corbin has the mic cut. Elias walks off but comes back and blasts Corbin with the guitar. The face turn is a long time coming, but I’m not sure how well it’s going to work. Still though, you couldn’t hold it back much longer.

We look at the Bellas turning on Ronda Rousey two weeks ago.

Here are the Bellas and Rousey to sign. The twins bail as soon as Rousey shows up but she says she’s not going to beat them up tonight. Instead, she’s going to sign a contract so she can beat them up on Sunday. She even offers to put her hands behind her back because if they can beat her up like that, her own mother would kill her. They have her word, which is Ronda’s bond.

The Bellas come in and mock her for not being as good in judo as her mother or for not retiring undefeated from UFC. Nikki says Ronda’s mother is already ashamed of her so imagine what it’s going to be like when a Diva beats her for the title. She even slaps Ronda, who signs and promises to end Nikki on Sunday. This was WAY better than last week, partially because it didn’t go on for ten minutes. Now hopefully Sunday’s match follows this week’s example and not last week’s.

Reigns’ speech again.

Rollins and Ambrose say there are no words to talk about how they’re feeling, so tonight they’re going to win for Roman.

Dana Brooke vs. Nia Jax vs. Tamina vs. Ember Moon

One fall to a finish. It’s a brawl to start as the announcers try to push Tamina vs. Nia as an interesting battle. Nia drops Dana and hits a flip splash but gets superkicked to the floor by Tamina. Ember goes up and hits the Eclipse to pin Tamina at 1:37.

Evolution rundown.

Here’s Titus O’Neil on the stage to introduce a group of breast cancer survivors with title belts.

Trish Stratus and Lita are ready to fight on Sunday and aren’t worried about Mickie James and Alexa Bliss. Alicia Fox comes up to make fun of them but here’s Mickie from behind for the cheap shot brawl. Security breaks it up but Trish and Lita run back in to beat them up. Trish: “That’s how we did it in the Attitude Era.”

Tag Team Titles: Seth Rollins/Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler/Drew McIntyre

Ziggler and McIntyre are defending. It’s a brawl to start with the champs being knocked outside to send us to an early break. Back with Rollins hitting a suicide dive onto both champs but McIntyre kicks him down back inside. Ziggler comes in, teases a superkick to Ambrose, and goes with a chinlock on Rollins.

That doesn’t last long as Rollins fights up and throws him down, followed by an enziguri on McIntyre. Ziggler is fast enough to get over and pull Ambrose off the apron though, leaving Rollins to take the reverse Alabama Slam. Back from a second break with Rollins making a blind tag and dropping a frog splash for two on McIntyre as Ambrose dives onto Ziggler. McIntyre gets put in the Tree of Woe but of course sits up to throw Rollins down.

Rollins is fine enough to superplex Ziggler into the Falcon Arrow as the fans are going nuts on these kickouts, probably because they know a title change is coming. The Stomp misses so Rollins lifts Ziggler up for a powerbomb into McIntyre. Dean comes back in but Dirty Deeds is broken up and a Claymore sends him outside.

Ziggler sends Rollins shoulder first into the post and gets two off the Zig Zag. The Claymore/Zig Zag combination is broken up by Ambrose but here’s Strowman as Rollins and Ziggler clothesline each other. McIntyre gets up to fight Strowman but they brawl into the crowd. Ziggler tries to grab a title but gets Stomped for the pin and the title at 19:16.

Rating: B. Well….yeah. This was the most obvious title change in recent history but at the same time, it’s the only thing they could do. With the Reigns situation, dedicating the match to him was the best thing they could do to guarantee an invested crowd during the title change. Another entertaining match too.

Post match the celebration is on….until Ambrose hits Dirty Deeds on Rollins. The place gets REALLY quiet as Ambrose pounds away on him and shouts about Rollins thinking he’s funny. The beatdown is on with Den throwing a title at him and then peeling back the floor mats for Dirty Deeds on the concrete. Dean rips off the Shield shirt and leaves through the crowd to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. I’m giving this one a big break tonight because of the opening announcement changing everything. That being said, I’m less interested in seeing either Evolution or Crown Jewel than I was coming in, though I’m wanting to find out where some other things are going. This week’s show made those two pay per views feel more like things we have to get through rather than something I want to watch, which is a really bad sign. Not a great show, but you have to give them a break on some parts of that.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

Tonight on Monday Night Raw, Roman Reigns opened the show and announced that he was vacating the Universal Championship due to having leukemia. Reigns said that he had been diagnosed with the disease when he was twenty two but it had gone into remission, only to come back now. Reigns made it clear that he is NOT retiring and will be back one day. There is currently no word on what this means for the Universal Title.

I…..I have no idea what to say on this.  My goodness man.  Superman punch that thing in the face and get back soon.

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #27
Date: October 19, 2018
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Matt Striker, Tony Schiavone

We’re onto a fresh taping cycle and back in New York with a major main event. This time around we have Shane Strickland facing Tom Lawlor in a match that belongs on a big stage. I’m not sure what to expect from the rest of the show but this promotion knows how to build up multiple things at the same time. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at Strickland vs. Lawlor, with Shane talking about how people think he’s lost his edge.

Opening sequence.

The announcers preview the main event.

El Hijo de LA Park vs. Sammy Guevara

Park has Salina, who fired Sammy a few months back, in his corner. Sammy gets sent outside for an early suicide dive but he’s right back up with one of his own. Back in and Park scores with a high crossbody for no cover, opting instead to kick Sammy into the corner. Guevara manages to backflip over the rather tall Park (that’s impressive) and then dropkick him down.

Park’s own high crossbody still gets no cover as the announcers talk about next week’s Halloween special. A running Canadian Destroyer gives Park two more to send Sammy outside with Park moonsaulting after him. Back in and Sammy misses his own moonsault but is right there with a standing shooting star for two. Park gets two of his own off a super Spanish Fly but Guevara hits a low superkick. Guevara misses a charge though and gets caught in an over the shoulder piledriver to give Park the pin at 5:38.

Rating: D+. This one didn’t do it for me for the most part as Guevara is good for a spot like this but Park feels like a knockoff of his father (the name doesn’t help). The problem here is the story not being the most thrilling, as it’s not something that Salina needs to be involved in. She’s the best manager in the promotion (and one of the best around today) but this story doesn’t feel up to her level. The match was fine for an opener, just not that interesting.

Tom Lawlor says you know what to expect from him. He ran through 39 people in the Battle Riot and is the ace around here. But who are you getting from Strickland? The World Champion or the guy who won’t even show up?

Rush is still coming.

Konnan isn’t impressed by Salina’s actions last week and promises to have the Lucha Bros take out LA Park and Hijo de LA Park.

Samoan Island Tribe vs. Smash N Dash Connection

That would be Samu/Lance Anoa’i vs. Kotto Brazil/Barrington Hughes. The Samoans jump them from behind and Samu slams Kotto to start. Thankfully it’s off to Lance in a hurry for a sunset flip Backstabber (cool) but he makes sure to cut off the ring before covering. It’s back to Samu as Striker explains Samoans having hard hands. A clothesline takes Kotto down and Lance comes in to spit at Hughes.

Kotto gets up a boot in the corner but Lance slams him down to break up a hot tag attempt. Lance suckers Hughes in but superkicks him twice before the huge one can even get in. A double Stroke gets no cover as Lance misses a top rope splash instead, allowing the tag to Hughes (already with one foot over the ropes before he comes in. Hughes tries a headbutt for no logical reason as everything breaks down. Lance gets thrown into a spear on Samu and it’s Sliced Bread off Hughes’ chest into a splash to give Hughes the pin at 6:15.

Rating: D. I’m sorry what now? You have Samu, the 55 year old wrestler whose top claim to fame since the 1980s is being part of a famous family, and his son takes the pin? Lance isn’t a star or anything, but what’s the point? Just having someone pin Samu can be spun as a rub. I really don’t get this one, as Lance might not be a star, but do you really need to have him take a fall here? Someone explain this one to me.

A quieter than usual Sami Callihan says he’s ready for Jimmy Havoc next week because Havoc falsely believes he’s the most violent wrestler in the world. They used to be friends but next week, only one man walks out.

Stokely Hathaway is coming.

Shane Strickland says this is his house and MLW would be hard pressed to find someone like him.

Fightland card rundown.

Salina laughs off Konnan’s words and sees a bright future for her men.

Jimmy Havoc likes the possibilities of next week. No matter what the wheel lands on, the match will be in his favor. New York will run red with Callihan’s blood.

Tom Lawlor vs. Shane Strickland

Low Ki is on commentary and when asked about the marks the two have made on MLW, he says he just sees two marks in the ring. Feeling out process to start with Lawlor headlocking him to the mat to no effect. Low Ki actually goes into some of the best analysis I’ve ever heard, talking about what every move is designed to do as well as what it’s looking to set up. If nothing else, it makes Striker sound that much more useless.

Lawlor goes to the apron but slips, allowing Shane to snap the arm over the top rope and kick him to the floor. Another kick to the arm lets Shane wrap the arm around the barricade. Lawlor clotheslines the post by mistake (you know, because you go for left armed clotheslines all the time), allowing Shane to start in on the arm back inside. Shane can’t get an armbar of various forms so he jumps on Tom’s back and pulls back on both arms leaving Tom to bite the ropes for the break. That’s not something you see every day.

Some Low Ki style kicks (Low Ki: “I wonder where he learned that.”) and a discus lariat sets up the rolling cutter for two. Shane takes too much time going up though and Lawlor hits a spinning kick to the head to slow things down. A top rope superplex into a front chancery has Shane in trouble. That’s reversed into a suplex for the double knockdown though as both guys get a breather.

Back up and Lawlor wins a slugout so Shane grabs the bad arm in a smart move. A Falcon Arrow gives Lawlor two but Shane pops up with a jumping knee to the face as Low Ki has gone silent. Lawlor is fine enough for a one armed German suplex and Low Ki gets up as Lawlor slaps on a rear naked choke. Salina comes out for a distraction and Low Ki kicks Lawlor in the head.

Shane doesn’t cover, opting to drape Lawlor over the barricade for a double stomp to the back instead. Back in and a regular double stomp gets two so Low Ki asks Shane why he can’t get a pin. Another snap of the arm sets up a knee to the face but Lawlor manages a one arm choke while biting on the arm tape because he has one arm….for the tap at 16:40.

Rating: B. I was actually surprised by the finish, which is even more impressive when I knew the ending beforehand. Lawlor is being treated as the undisputed star of the promotion and that puts him on a heck of a path to a fight with Low Ki. Shane is on his way to rock bottom, which could make for a heck of a comeback story down the line. Good main event here, with a lot of stories being told at the same time.

After a quick look at next week’s show, Lawlor says he’s cashing in his World Title shot at Super Fight on February 2. That’s quite a long time away and I’m not sure what they’re supposed to do until then.

Overall Rating: C+. I liked the main event a lot but they were lacking a lot in the first half of the show. I’m wanting to see the Fightland show and next week’s card is looking good as well. MLW knows how to build up their shows but more importantly they’re actually good once the shows take place. This show is nothing that’s going to blow you away, but for a weekly one hour TV show that keeps you wanting to come back, Fusion is good stuff.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-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: July 5, 1999
Location: Crown Coliseum, Fayetteville, North Carolina
Attendance: 8,227
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

So Austin is the champion again and that means it’s…well it’s probably exactly the same thing that we’ve been having for months now but with a different champion at the top. Honestly you can never guess what’s coming on these insane shows but I have a feeling Vince McMahon is going to be up to some shenanigans. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s title change. You can hear the ratings climbing again. Undertaker wants a First Blood rematch. I’m guessing he requested that on Heat?

Opening sequence.

Here’s Austin to open things up. He may have been bleeding last week but he got the job done. Vince McMahon may have spent four months trying to take the WWF Title away from Austin but last week he crumpled those plans up and put them….uh….well you get the idea. The First Blood match is on for Fully Loaded and he hasn’t forgotten Undertaker busting him open last year against Kane.

Cue Vince to say that’s not happening. Austin cuts him off by saying his hair isn’t so good and Vince has 15,000 people calling him an a******. One of them has to go and go for good and Vince is willing to bet on the Undertaker to get rid of Austin. He’ll even let Austin’s attorneys draw up the contract. The only rules are that if Austin wins, Vince is done with him but if Austin loses, he never gets another title shot ever.

The thought of Austin as the champion makes Vince want to vomit and something has to be done about him. Either way, this is going to be the end of an era and if Austin wins, Vince is gone for good. Austin says deal, just so he can get rid of Vince. This was kind of long (standard around here) and there has to be something up on Vince’s part, which is the whole point of the thing.

Rock is cool with the idea of being locked in a cage with HHH because HHH is nothing to be scared of. Before he goes any further though, Michael Cole’s face needs to be covered by Rock’s new shirt. I mean, he’s got a point. Anyway HHH doesn’t know what he’s in for tonight because Rock emits electricity. As for Billy Gunn (To Cole: “Keep your head still jabroni.”), he’s still nothing so Rock is here to electrify as only he can. The energy is there but he doesn’t have his classic cadence just yet.

Tag Team Titles: Acolytes vs. Hardy Boyz

The Hardys are challenging and have Michael Hayes in their corner. Bradshaw is coming in with a bad neck after taking a Tombstone onto the steps last night. It’s a brawl to start with the Hardys’ dives before the bell not working so well. Jeff gets sent into the steps but Matt grabs a neckbreaker to put Faarooq down. The top rope splash/legdrop combination gets two but Faarooq plants Matt with a spinebuster.

Bradshaw comes in and hammers away, including catching Matt’s high crossbody. Jeff is right there with a dropkick to Matt’s back to knock both of them down so Faarooq comes in to beat Jeff down as well. A DDT gets two of Faarooq though and Jeff kicks Bradshaw in the face. That just earns Matt a Clothesline for two as the champs just can’t get rid of these guys. Everything breaks down and Hayes throws Jeff his cane to crack Bradshaw in the head. Matt’s tornado DDT is good for the pin and the titles in a huge upset.

Rating: D. The match was all kinds of sloppy but this was one of the biggest upsets in Raw history. I know the Hardys would move on to become one of the most successful teams of all time but at this point they were two nothing guys who were mostly interchangeable with each other. You have to start them somewhere though and maybe the Hardys can go somewhere. Way down the line. If ever.

Post break the Hardys and Hayes can’t believe they won but the feed breaks up, sending us over to GTV where Droz and Prince Albert are in drag with Droz saying it feels sexy. Well that was stupid.

Gangrel vs. Godfather

Gangrel isn’t happy with Godfather, who seemed to let Edge have some of the ladies for helping him out recently. Speaking of the ladies, Godfather has two of them here and one of them is none other than Lita. Actually hang on as Godfather wants Val to come out here, followed by Albert and Droz. Thankfully JR is there to explain that they’re dressed like women due to losing a match to Godfather and Venis. That doesn’t make it better, but at least it’s there. Droz is way too happy to be in the clothes and you can hear Russo laughing from here.

Gangrel jumps Godfather and there’s a clip with Godfather suddenly facing the other way. I wonder how bad that could have been. A spinwheel kick puts Godfather down but Gangrel misses a charge. Godfather misses a legdrop, avoids an elbow, and drops the leg for the pin. What an odd little match.

Post match Albert and Droz jump Godfather and Venis with Gangrel joining in. Edge and Christian come out to ask Gangrel what he’s doing but don’t bother to help Val.

Stephanie tells Test to be careful.

Test vs. Joey Abs

Joey jumps him before the match but gets kicked in the face for his efforts. The gutwrench powerbomb takes Joey down again but here’s Shane dragging Stephanie to the ring as the rest of the Mean Street Posse comes in to beat Test down.

Stephanie has to watch the beatdown. Shane glares at her as he leaves.

Chyna is furious that someone has vandalized her “beloved” car, thinking it was DX. The DX painted on the car would suggest she’s right. She tells the cops that either they can deal with it or she will.

Hardcore Title: Al Snow vs. D’Lo Brown

Brown is challenging and spends a lot of time talking trash, allowing Snow to come in and hit him in the head with a cookie sheet. They head to the floor and into the crowd with Snow breaking a broom over his back. Brown punches him up an escalator with some kid trying to run up the other side and screaming about the fight. Snow falls back down (at least on the proper side) and Brown chokes him with a pay phone. JR: “Somebody better call 1-800-Collect!” Brown: “Next time, call 1-800-Collect!”

They go through another door (thankfully with the camera running up to them instead of being ready for them) where Brown hits him with a shovel. It’s off to catering with Brown hitting the Low Down onto Snow onto a table, which of course doesn’t move because it’s a real table. Brown whips him through a standing table but Mideon pops up for no apparent reason to hit D’Lo and give Snow a breather. Snow puts Brown on a table and uses a forklift to get in the air for a splash to retain.

Rating: D. These matches are still entertaining, even if they’re this stupid. The best parts of the matches is to have them go through the back and see what toys they can find so the phone part was the highlight of the whole shindig. Snow was the most entertaining of the hardcore guys so this was as good as it was going to get. The Mideon thing isn’t likely to go anywhere but that has to happen at least three times a show.

Mideon walks by and looks at Brown.

The cops are looking for X-Pac and Road Dogg and Fink tells them where to go.

Road Dogg vs. Val Venis

So the cops around here suck. Val is banged up from earlier and doesn’t even do his catchphrase. A missed charge lets Val stomp away in the corner and he hits his running knees against the ropes. Val hits the Russian legsweep and hits the hip swivel, setting up a butterfly suplex for two. Dogg is right back with the shaky jabs but here are the cops with X-Pac in handcuffs. They arrest Dogg as well for one of the weirdest no contests you’ll ever see.

Chyna and Billy Gunn are very pleased with these results.

DX is put in the squad car.

Intercontinental Title: Jeff Jarrett vs. Chaz

Chaz is challenging in case you’re rather slow. The fans want puppies but settle for an exchange of wristlocks instead. Chaz gets in a shot in the corner and powerslams Jeff for two. Debra offers the puppies so Chaz’s girlfriend Marianna goes over to yell, allowing Jeff to hit the Stroke to retain in a hurry.

Post match Jarrett goes for the guitar but Thrasher runs in for the save. What a moment.

Edge vs. Big Boss Man

Boss Man powers him into the corner to start but gets drop toeholded down as the pace picks up. A missile dropkick gives Edge two but Boss Man hits a splash for three two’s. Edge is right back with a spear (not a good one either) for the fast pin.

Post match Boss Man hits him with the nightstick and cuffs him to the ropes for a beating. Christian runs in for the save but gets the same treatment as Edge. There is no Gangrel in sight and the post match angle was longer than the match.

Chyna is going to press charges. HHH is ready to beat up Rock but wants to know where it’s going to get him.

Billy Gunn vs. Meat

Chyna and PMS are here too. Gunn jumps him before the bell but Meat hits a layout F5 for two. Not that it matters as a Jackhammer sets up the Fameasser (with Gunn getting a heck of a jump) for the pin.

Post match Jacqueline yells at Gunn and gets dropped by Chyna. Gunn spray paints Ryan Shamrock (JR: “This spray painting idea is really original.”) and Chyna helps him do the same to Jacqueline and Meat, with JR thinking Chyna might have painted her own car while making more NWO references. This is another story that feels like it has a bunch of twists and turns, including starting and paying off a twist in the span of forty minutes.

Kane vs. Big Show/Hardcore Holly

Holly tells Show to start for the team so Kane dropkicks Show in the chest, only to be powerslammed for his efforts. Now Holly is willing to come in to pound away in the corner and dropkick the knee. Cue Undertaker and Paul Bearer for a staredown with Show, leaving Kane to chokeslam Holly for the fast pin.

Post match Kan and Undertaker beat Show down. Kane leaves and Undertaker chairs Show in the head as Kane isn’t sure what to do.

HHH vs. The Rock

Inside a cage with escape only. They slug it out to start with Rock getting the better of it until a kick to the ribs cuts him off. Some right hands in the corner keep Rock down but he gets in a kick of his own. Stomping ensues but the jumping knee to the face takes Rock down. HHH goes for the door but would rather get some handcuffs from Chyna to hit Rock in the head. A low blow prevents Rock from being attached to the cage but HHH is right back with a swinging neckbreaker.

It’s still too early for HHH to get out though and it’s something like an armdrag off the top of the cage. Rock goes for the door but of course Chyna shoves the referee down, slams the door on Rock’s head, gets called a Jezebel by JR, and gets inside to help HHH out. Rock follows him though and things keep going because there’s no referee. HHH gets catapulted into the cage and they head back inside as the match pretty much restarts.

A few rams into the cage and a DDT have HHH in trouble, followed by a top rope ax handle of all things. HHH is back up and hits a hard clothesline but takes too long getting up. They both wind up on top for the slugout until Chyna hands HHH a chair for a hard shot to the head. For no logical reason, HHH comes back inside and crotches himself on the ropes, leaving Rock to climb down for the win.

Rating: C-. This was a pretty messy match and felt more like a big time house show match than a TV main event. That being said, Rock vs. HHH is always worth at least a look and that was the case again here. Rock winning is fine as a way to send the fans home happy and HHH technically won so he has a bragging point for later.

Post match here’s Gunn for a Fameasser to Rock on the floor and a double beatdown ends the show.

Overall Rating: D. As usual, there’s no much going on here that it’s almost impossible to keep track of everything going on. They set up the title match for the pay per view but other than that, it’s a bunch of stuff that feels like it’s being thrown at the wall instead of trying to have anything coherent going on. In other words, it’s very Russo. The title change would wind up being historic but there was no knowing what it would mean at this point. Overall there are worse shows from the era, but the DX angle isn’t working and the wrestling was barely there, as always.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Lucha Underground

Lucha Underground
Date: October 17, 2018
Location: Lucha Underground Temple, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Vampiro, Matt Striker

We’re two weeks away from the start of Ultima Lucha and most of the card has already been set up. I’m not sure what we’re going to be seeing in those two weeks as it’s all about building up the matches, many of which are already set. Hopefully they don’t throw in too many twists, though one or two wouldn’t be the worst idea in the world. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap does its regular job.

Jake Strong comes in to see Antonio Cueto, who has been rather impressed with Strong’s work. Antonio is willing to give him a title shot but Cueto has another idea. He gives Strong one of the Aztec Medallions and says tonight, Strong can move forward. Strong says to save one of Matanza’s sacrifices for him, followed by saying this temple is now his, albeit in a demonic voice. Antonio looks worried as Strong leaves.

Antonio is in the arena to say he’s already awarded the seven Aztec medallions to Aerostar, PJ Black, Hernandez, Big Bad Steve, King Cuerno, Jake Strong and Dante Fox. He doesn’t like the number seven though, meaning right now we’re having a battle royal where the winner can choose one person to be out of next week’s Gift of the Gods Title match.

Battle Royal

It’s a brawl to start (as it should be) with Aerostar doing the big spinning headscissors to take Steve down. Steve gets sent to the apron and actually stops to pose, allowing Aerostar to 619 him out. Serves the nitwit right. Hernandez jumps over the ropes in the corner, poses on the apron as well, and gets double dropkicked out. Egads there are some stupid people around here. Strong puts Black and Cuerno on the apron so Fox can kick them both off, followed by Aerostar being tossed as well. Fox and Strong are the only two left, with Strong clotheslining him to set up the final elimination and the win at 3:12.

Rating: D. Well, they did keep it short and that’s better than anything else they could have done here. There was no reason to believe that anyone outside of Aerostar was going to give Strong a challenge here so the match went as it should have. Strong is clearly someone they want to push as a star, lack of charisma aside.

Post match Strong says he’s not throwing anyone out of the match because he can beat them all. That’s cool with Antonio, who gives Strong Johnny Mundo for a warmup tonight.

The Mack vs. Killshot

Son of Havoc is watching from the balcony. They trade hand walks to start until Mack dropkicks him in the chest to take over. Some running kicks in the corner rock Killshot so he kicks Mack in the face as well before grabbing his nose. Mack gets knocked outside but hands on by his feet, setting up the Killstomp to the floor. Back in and a snap German suplex takes Killshot down and there’s the Stunner, only to have Mil Muertes come in for a spear on Mack and the DQ at 2:50.

Post match Son of Havoc runs in to chase Killshot off, leaving Muertes to hit the Flatliner on Mack.

Striker is in the ring to interview XO Lishus and Ivelisse. They’ve been challenged to a three way elimination Trios Titles match at Ultima Lucha but Joey Ryan is injured. They have a new partner though, so here’s Sammy Guevara. Before Sammy can say anything though, here’s Famous B. to say Guevara has a seven year deal (haha) with no breaks (haha again) with Infamous Inc. If Sammy wants to wrestle at Ultima Lucha, he can team with Texano and Dr. Wagner. Sammy beats Famous B. up and throws the contract in the trash. The can is put on B.’s head for a superkick, because wrestling contracts work that way.

Ultima Lucha rundown.

Jake Strong vs. Johnny Mundo

Strong easily takes him down with a waistlock so Mundo pops up with the Disaster Kick. That’s fine with Strong, who knocks him outside without much effort. Some running clotheslines in the corner and another to the back of the head look to set up the Vader Bomb but Mundo gets his feet up. Mundo is back up but it’s way too early for the Moonlight Drive. A trip to the apron goes badly for Mundo, as Strong sends him into the post and they fight into the crowd.

Mundo’s kick is countered into an ankle lock but Mundo escapes and powerbombs him off the balcony. Back in and the Countdown to Impact actually connects (how rare) for two. They slug it out on the top until Strong gets knocked down, only to run the ropes for the belly to belly superplex.

The Vader Bomb gets two and the ankle lock goes on again. That’s broken up as well and now the Moonlight Drive gets two. For some reason Mundo tries a superkick and gets ankle locked again and the roll through doesn’t work. Instead Johnny throws his elbow pad off and kicks Strong low for the break. A one legged Starship Pain gets two and the ankle lock goes on again for the clean tap at 13:12.

Rating: C+. Mundo’s, shall we say, questionable offense aside (don’t throw kicks at a guy who uses the ankle lock), this was a fun match and the best thing that could have happened to Strong. I know he doesn’t have the most in depth character, but a win like this is the kind of thing that should help launch him up the charts as we’re almost to Ultima Lucha. Now just get the Gift of the Gods Title on him.

Post match the ankle lock goes on again and here’s Matanza to pick the bones. Swagger leaves so Taya comes in for the failed save. Matanza gives Taya the Wrath of the Gods as Johnny is busted open. Antonio comes out to watch to get Matanza to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This is the weird time of the season where the entire big show is set and we’re stuck waiting on actually getting there. The wrestling wasn’t the point tonight as the first two matches were barely three minutes long each and the main event was thrown together during the show. I do want to see Ultima Lucha though, and that wasn’t the case just a few weeks back.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Survivor Series 1990
Date: November 22, 1990
Location: Hartford Civic Center, Hartford, Connecticut
Attendance: 16,000
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Roddy Piper

This is a somewhat different show that in recent years as we have a main event of sorts. It was never tried again and that’s probably the best idea. It’s called the Grand Finale Match of Survival in which the survivors of each team meet in one final Survivor Series match. The winners get absolutely nothing, which continues to prove that these shows are pretty worthless. Let’s get to it.

Sean Mooney welcomes us to the show and talks about the Grand Finale. He’s standing in front of a giant egg which apparently is going to hatch because of the heat from the crowd. Nothing good can possibly come from this.

The nifty squares intro theme open things up again.

Gorilla and Piper chat about the show for a bit.

The Warriors vs. The Perfect Team

The Warriors: Ultimate Warrior, Texas Tornado, Legion of Doom

The Perfect Team: Mr. Perfect, Demolition

This is the three man version of Demolition, including Crush. Perfect is feuding with Tornado (Kerry Von Erich, the Intercontinental Champion) and the LOD is feuding with Demolition after the LOD cost them the titles. Warrior, the WWF World Champion, is there because he has nothing else to do save for a minor feud with Perfect. His team is in the back before the match and says they’ll win.

The name Warriors is appropriate as you have the Ultimate Warrior, the Modern Day Warrior (Von Erich’s nickname in WCCW) and the Road Warriors (the LOD’s NWA name). I’ll never understand why the LOD and Demolition never had a big proper match. Perfect immediately goes to the apron and lets part of Demolition start. It’s Animal vs. Smash first in major power battle. They get to the fight immediately with Animal taking him to the mat. Animal throws him into Hawk for a right hand and the other Warriors get in a shot as well.

Smash comes back with a powerslam for two and it’s off to Perfect. That doesn’t last long so here’s Smash again, and he walks right into a powerslam. Everything breaks down and the Warriors clear the ring. Tornado comes in to face Smash who is taking a beating in this so far. Off to Ax who has much better luck for about ten seconds. There’s the Claw from Tornado but for some reason Warrior gets the tag and hits a series of awkward looking shoulder blocks before finishing Ax with the splash.

Crush immediately comes in to jump Warrior and take over. Smash gets in a slam on Warrior and Crush drops a top rope knee for two. Perfect is freaking out in his trademark over the top style. Warrior gets up a boot in the corner and clotheslines Crush down. Off to Hawk who always looks like he could murder someone in the ring. Perfect tries him out and is immediately slammed down.

Hawk counters a reversal to send Perfect into the corner but his shoulder goes into the post HARD to give the evil ones the advantage. Demolition pounds away on him but Hawk punches right back. A big flying shoulder puts Smash down and Hawk doesn’t tag when he has the chance. The top rope clothesline kills Smash and everything breaks down. Hawk kicks the referee and somehow this disqualifies not only Hawk but also Animal, Smash and Crush. We’re down to Perfect vs. Warrior/Tornado.

It’s going to be Warrior starting the handicap match but Perfect wants Tornado instead. Perfect immediately jumps him and is clotheslined out almost immediately after the jumping. Warrior bangs Perfect’s head into Heenan’s and sends Bobby into the front row. Tornado charges at Perfect and slams into the post to give Perfect the advantage for a bit. A buckle gets exposed somewhere in there and Tornado’s face goes into the steel, setting up the PerfectPlex to make it one on one.

Perfect tries the PerfectPlex again on Warrior which doesn’t work at all. Instead he hammers Warrior down and hits a great looking dropkick for two. Having Perfect run things out there for as long as possible is the best idea they’ve got. Warrior starts grabbing the ropes and shrugging off all the offense from Perfect. A shoulder block and the splash get the final pin for the Ultimate one.

Rating: D. This was probably the worst Survivor Series match so far in the four years they’ve been running this show. Not only was the match lopsided from the start, but half of the people in it were gone seven minutes in. Perfect never had a chance and Warrior had no reason to be in this match at all.

Ted DiBiase has a mystery partner for his match. Oh boy does he ever.

Million Dollar Team vs. Dream Team

Million Dollar Team: Ted DiBiase, Rhythm and Blues, ???

Dream Team: Dusty Rhodes, Koko B. Ware, Hart Foundation

Rhythm and Blues are Honky Tonk Man and Greg Valentine and they’ve been challenging the Hart Foundation for the Tag Team Titles. Dusty and DiBiase are feuding for obvious character reasons. Now we get to the legendary part of the match: the mystery partner. DiBiase gets on the mic and introduces for the first time ever…..THE UNDERTAKER. Who on earth would have imagined what this guy would become over the next twenty two years? Unreal indeed. The look on Undertaker’s face is eerie and he stands there like a zombie to make it even better. Undertaker has his own manager here in the form of Brother Love.

Quick sidebar: the Undertaker is probably the greatest example ever of someone being the only person that could pull off his character. Mark Calaway is PERFECT as the Undertaker with the look and the size and the dead looking eyes and the tattoos and everything like that. Before this he was just Mean Mark Callous in WCW and was a generic big villain. Sometimes it’s about finding what works and Undertaker has worked for a very long time. Also a bit of trivia: he debuted at a Superstars taping three days before this under the name Kane the Undertaker.

Undertaker and Bret start with the newcomer pounding the tar out of Bret. Well if you want to make someone look like a killer, call Bret Hart. Bret hits the ropes and charges at Undertaker, only to get caught by the throat and slammed down. It was more like a clothesline that Undertaker went to the mat with than the usual chokeslam here but he did have Bret by the throat.

Off to Neidhart who can’t move Undertaker in the slightest and gets slammed for trying. Jim looked TERRIFIED and tags out to Koko, who is too stupid to be afraid. Koko misses a charge and clotheslines himself on the top. The Tombstone (I believed named by Gorilla on the spot here) debuts but isn’t exactly the famous version yet, as Undertaker has both of Koko’s legs on one side of his head and covers with the folded arms but from the sides. It looked and sounded great though.

Bret comes in and hammers on Undertaker who just stares at him. Undertaker tags in Valentine and gives one of the most evil glares you’ll ever see at Bret. Off to Dusty who starts gyrating. They chop it out in the corner and it’s off to Neidhart. The Foundation take their turns working over Valentine’s arm but Greg gets a knee up in the corner. Off to Honky who is rapidly on his way out of the company. Bret makes a blind tag to Neidhart who sneaks in and powerslams Honky out.

DiBiase comes in to jump Neidhart but it’s quickly off to Dusty for the big showdown. Dusty tags out to Neidhart quickly but Virgil trips Jim up, allowing DiBiase to clothesline Neidhart for the pin. Here’s Bret again who pounds away on DiBiase and it’s back to Rhodes for more of the same. Back to Undertaker who gets some HEIGHT on a jumping stomp to the back of Dusty’s head.

Undertaker chokes Bret in the corner and somehow shows no emotion while at the same time looking angrier than any wrestler I’ve ever seen. Bret fights the now legal DiBiase out of the corner and it’s off to Dusty. Undertaker comes in, goes up, walks (a little way) down the rope with no one to hold onto, and hits a double ax to eliminate Dusty. Brother Love stomps on Dusty a bit so Dusty chases him off. Undertaker stalks Dusty to the back to get counted out, which is the only thing they could have done with him here.

Back in the ring Bret rolls up Valentine very quickly and it’s DiBiase vs. Hart. Bret pounds on DiBiase and atomic drops him to the floor, followed by a pescado to take Ted out again. DiBiase’s shoulder goes into the post and his head goes into the steps and they head back inside. They slug it out but DiBiase sends him chest first into the buckle to take over.

A quick backslide gets two for Hart and now it’s time for a classic: Bret trips over DiBiase and fakes a knee injury, resulting in a small package for two. Virgil interference messes up and another rollup gets two for Bret. The backbreaker and middle rope elbow get two for Hart but DiBiase rolls through a cross body for the pin.

Rating: C+. This is a very interesting match as you could see stars being made and stars going away. DiBiase clearly didn’t mean as much as he used to and would shift into a tag team run soon after this. Dusty would be gone in January as would Honky. On the other hand you can see the rise of Bret Hart on the horizon as the crowd was LOSING IT over those near falls at the end. Oh and the Undertaker. That’s kind of a big deal.

The Vipers (Jake Roberts’ team) are ready for Martel’s team. Why they’re in the shower I’m not sure.

The Vipers vs. The Visionaries

The Vipers: Jake Roberts, Rockers, Jimmy Snuka

The Visionaries: Rick Martel, Warlord, Power and Glory

Power and Glory are Hercules and Paul Roma. This is built around Martel vs. Roberts, which is based on Martel blinding Jake with cologne and Jake not having full vision yet. This was a BIG feud which they screwed up with a horrible match at Wrestlemania VII. It wasn’t that the wrestling was bad, but that it was a blindfold match and they spent about 2 minutes in contact with each other.

Marty and Warlord start as Piper is singing I Am The Walrus. Warlord powers Marty around but misses a charge in the corner. Warlord is now out of his Powers of Pain phase and is now shiny and bald. Both Rockers try to outmaneuver him but it just results in bringing in Martel. Shawn handles him with ease and brings in Jake, causing Martel to scamper away.

It’s Roma instead and Jake picks him apart like he’s not even there. He works on Roma’s arm and brings in Snuka to keep it up, but the afro apparently weighs down Snuka’s brain to the point where he can’t maintain a wristlock. Off to Hercules who gets chopped down so it’s back to Warlord instead. Snuka tries his stuff but when that gets nowhere it’s off to Marty. Jannetty opts for speed but jumps into a great looking powerslam for the pin.

Off to Shawn whose leapfrog is caught but he hurricanranas Warlord down instead. Jake comes in and the fans wants a DDT. A bunch of clotheslines take Warlord down and it’s back to Shawn. Roma comes in with an elbow drop to the back of the head as Gorilla talks anatomy. Warlord comes in and backdrops Shawn before tagging out to Hercules. Martel comes in just as fast and drops a knee for two. Roma sends Shawn into the corner and Shawn of course sells it like he’s dead. Martel’s shoulder hits the post and here’s Snuka again.

A flying headbutt to the standing Martel gets two, but Rick grabs a small package for the pin out of nowhere. Jake comes in again and Martel immediately runs and brings in Hercules. Roberts is getting frustrated because he can’t get his hands on Martel, but he still manages a knee lift and a failed DDT attempt. Jake starts pounding away on Hercules but Martel clotheslines him down instead.

Roma comes in for some stomping but he misses a middle rope punch. There’s the hot tag to Shawn who suplexes Roma down and hits a middle rope elbow for two. Shawn does what he can but Hercules comes in off a blind tag and pounds away even more. Power and Glory hook up the Powerplex (superplex from Hercules immediately followed by a top rope splash from Roma) eliminates Shawn and it’s 4-1. It’s Hercules in first but Jake is in trouble. Warlord comes in with a bearhug but Jake escapes and DDTs him out of nowhere. Jake says screw it and gets the snake out. He chases Martel to the back for the countout loss.

Rating: D+. There wasn’t much to see here but other than Jake vs. Martel, there was nothing here at all. To the best of my knowledge, Warlord and Snuka never interacted before or after this so they were just tacked on. The Rockers and Power and Glory had fought at Summerslam but that’s about it. The Visionaries are the first ever team to survive intact.

The Hulkamaniacs are ready for the Natural Disasters. This is a continuation of Hogan vs. Earthquake, with Hulk’s team facing Earthquake and Jimmy Hart’s and Bobby Heenan’s cronies. Hogan says they can go get rid of Sadaam Hussein. Remember that this is during the Gulf War.

Natural Disasters vs. Hulkamaniacs

Natural Disasters: Earthquake, Dino Bravo, Haku, Barbarian

Hulkamaniacs: Hulk Hogan, Big Boss Man, Tugboat, Jim Duggan

There’s some actual drama here as Hogan hadn’t pinned Earthquake before this and the other guys balance out somewhat well. Boss Man and Bravo are the captains’ friends at the moment and the other four are really just filling in space. Tugboat is a big guy called the Sailing Superstar. You can’t get much lamer than that. Haku vs. Duggan start us off as the announcers talk about the Grand Finale. It’s such a different time when they automatically know who is going to be on what side. Today you would be waiting on the swerve. Duggan pounds away on Haku and a clothesline gets two.

Bravo and Barbarian come in to get some shots but it’s quickly off to Haku vs. Boss Man. Haku dropkicks him down for two but the Boss Man Slam eliminates Haku quick. Barbarian comes in next and Boss Man runs him over. Heenan gets taken off the apron and Boss Man punches Barbarian a bit before walking into a suplex. Barbarian misses a middle rope elbow and it’s off to Duggan vs. Bravo. Scratch that as Earthquake makes a blind tag and crushes Duggan in the corner. Duggan keeps trying to knock Earthquake down but Jimmy low bridges him. Duggan brings the board in with him and hits Earthquake for the DQ.

It’s Hogan vs. Earthquake but Hulk beats up all three guys because he can. Hogan easily slams Earthquake and fires off ten punches in the corner. Earthquake comes back with a powerslam and tags in Bravo who stomps away, only to get small packaged for the pin. There’s the tag to Boss Man who hits his rapid fire punches in the corner. Boss Man goes up for a cross body and oh my goodness Earthquake caught him. That is SCARY power. Hogan shoves Boss Man on top of Earthquake for two but Barbarian kicks Boss Man in the back to put him down. An elbow from Earthquake eliminates Boss Man.

Hogan vs. Earthquake again and Hulk tries to drop the big guy. Hulk tries another slam but can’t get Earthquake up. The third attempt results in Earthquake falling on Hogan for two. Hulk avoids an elbow and there’s the tag to Tugboat, causing everyone to shout TOOOOT which sounds like booing.

Hogan pulls Earthquake to the floor and Earthquake and Tugboat get counted out. That leaves Hogan vs. Barbarian and things don’t look good for the Disasters. Barbarian goes after Hogan on the floor and doesn’t hit a piledriver well at all. It gets two and they clothesline each other. Barbarian hits the top rope clothesline, but it’s Hulk Up, legdrop and we’re done.

Rating: C-. This was a lot more fast paced and energetic than you would expect. The continued practice of just teasing the encounter that the match is based on is getting REALLY old though as I guess they want to preserve the house show draws, because who would want to see a feud continue after a single match right? My goodness have things changed in the last twenty years.

Hogan beats up Heenan post match and poses. Piper cheering for Hogan is just wrong.

Some fans talk and have little to say. Well one fan signs who he likes which is cool.

Here’s Savage with something to say. He’s still the King at this point which has been going on for awhile. Savage doesn’t have a match tonight and he doesn’t like not being recognized as the future WWF World Champion. He promises to take his title back from Warrior and talks about Sherri slapping The Ultimate Chicken a few times. There’s nothing of note here but it reinforced that they have issues. That’s something you never hear today: promos to just remind you that people don’t like each other.

Alliance vs. Mercenaries

Alliance: Nikolai Volkoff, Bushwhackers, Tito Santana

Mercenaries: Sgt. Slaughter, Boris Zhukov, Orient Express

This is during the Iraqi Sympathizer period for Slaughter and the idea here is military themed with the other four being a group of international wrestlers banding together to fight Slaughter and company. Before the match, Slaughter tells Gene about having a Thanksgiving dinner with the Mercenaries and not having to be inconvenienced by being in the desert. That’s better than being in the Army and eating K-Rations right? This was a pretty edgy angle at the time. Questionable but edgy. This interview is in the arena with the Mercenaries’ music playing. That must be a pretty dull period for the crowd.

The Bushwhackers torment Boris to start and the flying forearm from Tito eliminates him in about 20 seconds. Sato (half of the Orient Express, along with Tanaka) comes in and is accidentally superkicked by Tanaka. The Battering Ram puts out Sato and it’s 4-2 inside of two minutes. Tanaka comes in and the forearm from Tito makes it 4-1 in less than 2:15. Volkoff pounds on Slaughter with his usual stuff but gets punched in the face for his efforts as Slaughter takes over.

After a long beating, Slaughter eliminates Volkoff with an elbow. There were about three minutes of beating in between there but there was absolutely nothing of note to talk about. The Bushwhackers double team Sarge for a bit but Slaughter beats them down and gutbusts Luke for an elimination. A clothesline takes out Butch about 30 seconds later and it’s one on one.

Tito immediately dropkicks Slaughter into the post and things speed up with by far the two most talented guys in the match in there. Tito hits a top rope forearm for two and stomps away even faster. Piper is trying not to curse and Slaughter slams Santana’s head into the mat. A neckbreaker and backbreaker combine for two on Santana.

After some more beating, Tito gets a quick forearm attempt but hits the referee by mistake. The forearm hits the second time but General Adnan (Slaughter’s manager/boss) hits Santana with the flag and Slaughter puts on the Camel Clutch. The referee saw the flag though and it’s a DQ win for Tito.

Rating: D-. Well that…..happened I guess. They went through seven eliminations inside of eleven minutes and the match was awful. Basically this could have been Slaughter vs. either Volkoff or Santana and gotten the same payoff. I have no idea what they were going for here, but my guess is that they had nothing else to fill in fifteen minutes with (the show only runs two hours and twenty minutes and we’ve got something else to go before the main event).

DiBiase and the Visionaries say Warrior and Hogan (no mention of Santana) can’t work together. Sean says it’s going to be these five against Warrior and Hogan.

It’s time for the Egg Hatching. Gene talks about the fans being hot tonight and the egg starts to hatch. There’s no way around this: it’s the Gobbledygooker, a humanoid turkey who square dances to Turkey in the Straw with Gene Okerlund, does a bunch of flips and is played by the WAY too talented for this Hector Guerrero. The fans IMMEDIATELY start booing when it hatches, as there is absolutely no point to it. This was rumored to be anything from Undertaker to Flair (about a year early for him) to some Playboy Playmate. Total time spent on this: over seven minutes.

Hogan, Warrior and Santana are ready.

Hulk Hogan/Tito Santana/Ultimate Warrior vs. Ted DiBiase/Visionaries

Oddly enough, Hogan comes out before Tito. Tito and Warlord start and a forearm ends Warlord in less than 30 seconds. Roma immediately powerslams Tito and brings in DiBiase. My goodness a 20 minute Santana vs. DiBiase match would freaking rock. Tito misses another forearm and a hot shot gives DiBiase the pin.

Hogan comes in and beats the tar out of DiBiase for a bit before ducking his head too early. A kick to Hogan’s face slows him down and it’s off to Roma for a top rope forearm for two. Back to Hercules who pounds away on Hulk even more, followed by the same from DiBiase. The Powerplex hits Hogan…..and has basically no effect. Roma is immediately pinned by a clothesline and it’s 3-2.

Martel comes in to beat on Hogan but gets kicked in the face. Off to Warrior who fires off a bunch of kicks in the corner and backdrops Martel. Rick tries to hit him in the head and boy are you really that dumb? Hogan knocks Martel to the floor and Rick walks off for the countout. Hogan beats on DiBiase a bit and there’s the legdrop. Warrior beats Hercules with the splash about 40 seconds later to win.

Rating: D. What in the world was the point of this? I mean……am I watching a house show? These are the kind of matches you hear about at the end of shows to send the fans home happy, not to main event a PPV. It was clear that this show wasn’t needed and that something had to be done.

Posing ends the show.

Overall Rating: F. This show has some moments of ok, but can you imagine PAYING for this show? Undertaker debuts here but no one had any idea what that would mean. Nothing is changed at all, mainly because the company was afraid no one would want to see the house show matches after this.

This show runs two hours and eighteen minutes and nearly eight minutes of that are the Gobbledygooker. On top of that the main event runs about ten minutes in total counting entrances. You’re looking at about two hours for the non main event stuff and that’s ridiculous for a PPV. This is another show that doesn’t need to exist.

Ratings Comparison

Warriors vs. Perfect Team

Original: C-

Redo: D

Dream Team vs. Million Dollar Team

Original: C+

Redo: C+

Vipers vs. Visionaries

Original: D+

Redo: D+

Hulkamaniacs vs. Natural Disasters

Original: C+

Redo: C-

Alliance vs. Mercenaries

Original: F

Redo: D-

Grand Finale Match of Survival

Original: D-

Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original: F

Redo: F

It sucked four years ago and it still sucks now.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/11/09/history-of-survivor-series-count-up-1990-title-removed-due-to-anger-issues/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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