IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 14, 2018
Location: 02 Arena, London, England
Commentators: Corey Graves, Booker T., Michael Cole

We’re over in England for a taped show as WWE’s never ending spring tour continues. It’s still the Money in the Bank qualifying season to go with one or two other stories. This time around that includes Seth Rollins defending the Intercontinental Title against Kevin Owens in an already answered open challenge. In addition to that though we have the fallout from Jinder Mahal attacking Roman Reigns and costing him a qualifying match last week. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the NBC Up Fronts today with Nia Jax challenging Ronda Rousey. More on this later.

Here’s Roman Reigns to get things going with some Wrestlemania sized booing. I know the UK crowd only gets to see him a few times a year so they have to get it all in (what a failing concept) while they can. Reigns says he got ripped off last week and this time it wasn’t because of WWE management. He wants Mahal out here right now to make up for last week but here’s Kurt Angle to interrupt.

Angle says Jinder won’t be coming out here right now and the fans are NOT happy. Reigns isn’t pleased and it’s made even worse when Angle says Jinder will be in a Money in the Bank qualifying triple threat tonight. That’s fine with Reigns as Angle can just make it a four way. That’s a no as well because Reigns isn’t getting another qualifying opportunity. Reigns gets that and goes to find Jinder himself, earning a Goodbye Song from the fans.

We cut to Reigns in the back (more booing) and he finds Mahal, who throws the Singh Brother at him like a projectile. The brawl is on with both guys being thrown into stuff and then fighting back into the arena. Reigns hits a Superman Punch on the stage but Angle and security break it up.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens

Rollins is defending. Owens goes with right hands to the ribs to start and pounds away in the corner. Some kicks to the ribs get Rollins out of trouble and put Owens on the floor for a suicide dive. Owens pulls it out of the air and tosses him into the post, setting up a backsplash for two inside.

Back from a break with Rollins escaping an apron powerbomb and hitting a Falcon Arrow on the apron (that’s a new one) to knock them both down on the floor. It’s Rollins up first with some suicide dives but his own ribs look a little banged up. Back in and the springboard clothesline drops Owens again but a hard DDT gives Owens two. A clothesline gets the same as Rollins is more surviving than hanging in there at this point.

The Swanton hits raised knees and there’s the low superkick. The Revolution knee gets two but Seth’s frog splash hits knees as well, allowing Owens to get two off a small package. Owens goes up with Rollins trying the running superplex into the Falcon Arrow, only to have Owens hit his swinging superplex instead. That’s quite the counter and the surprise worked well. As they come back in, Rollins scores with a Stomp out of nowhere to retain at 14:55.

Rating: B. They’re getting somewhere with the idea of Rollins defending against everyone and wearing himself out as it could go either way. You could have Rollins challenge for the Universal Title or have someone catch the exhausted Rollins and win the title to set up a nice feud. Either way, they have a wide open field to go with there and that’s a very nice situation to be in.

We go to the NBC Up Fronts with various WWE names, including an interview with Ronda Rousey. Nia Jax came up and challenged her at Money in the Bank, with Rousey accepting. The match is official. I mean, it’s also stupid to go this way, but it’s official.

Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel come into Angle’s office, dub themselves the B Team (Dallas: “The B stands for BEST!”), and ask for a title shot. Angle points out that they’ve never actually won a match. Dallas says the Miztourage hasn’t done very well but the B Team is undefeated. Angle gives them a match to prove themselves if they’ll leave him alone. Works for me, as they’re still funny together.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Baron Corbin vs. No Way Jose vs. Bobby Roode

Corbin wastes no time in sending Jose outside but Roode punches away to take over. There’s a Blockbuster for two and we take an early break. Back with Corbin knocking Jose off the apron but going after him this time to continue the beating. Roode decks Corbin and Jose is finally able to get in some offense, including a middle rope crossbody for two. The spinebuster gets two on Jose and Roode goes up for a clothesline to take him down again.

The GLORIOUS pose looks to set up the DDT but Corbin offers a distraction, allowing Jose to clothesline Roode to the floor. Corbin keeps up the clothesline train with a running version off the apron. The chokebreaker drops Jose for two and Deep Six gets the same on Roode. Jose makes a save and Corbin is sent into the post but the Glorious DDT puts Jose away at 10:43.

Rating: C+. This was a nice surprise and you could almost imagine any of the three of them getting into the ladder match. Roode isn’t the most thrilling guy in the world but he’s someone that could be in there and fit in well enough. I still like Jose and the potential is there if he can get away from the dancing stuff. Then again, I can’t imagine that happening and that’s on WWE, as usual.

Owens wants a rematch with Rollins but Angle says no. That’s fine with Kevin, who pulls out his phone to call Stephanie McMahon. Angle goes in to see Jinder, who begs him to postpone the match. That can’t happen because tonight is the last night for qualifying matches on Raw, which doesn’t sit well with Mahal.

B Team vs. Breezango

B Team has homemade shirts, which are just white shirts with a B drawn in Sharpie. Bo rolls Breeze up for two to start and strikes a B TEAM pose. Breeze gets two off some rollups so the B Team takes a breather. Back in and Breezango hits a dropkick but Axel takes him down. Both Axel and Dallas take turns with elbows but a missed attempt allows the hot tag to Fandango. Booker complains about Fandango’s pants as he gets two off a powerslam to Axel. Bo comes back in and a belly to back suplex/neckbreaker combo is good for the pin at 3:45.

Rating: D+. It’s not like the division doesn’t need extra teams so putting these two together as a couple of goofy putzes is a perfectly fine idea. The B thing is clever enough and could make for some funny lines (Dallas needs to call their next opponents Wanna-B’s). I could easily see them winning the titles and then losing to a much better team but for what they are, this was fine.

Post match the B Team can’t believe what just happened but promise to win the titles.

Sasha Banks/Natalya/Ember Moon vs. Riott Squad

Moon headscissors Logan to start but Sasha tags herself in from behind and gets two off the running knees. Sasha drops Logan again and it’s a big staredown as we take a break. Back with Morgan getting suplexed and Sasha working on a wristlock. Morgan gets in a middle rope faceplant to drop Sasha and we hit a cross arm choke.

Riott comes in but gets sent into the post, followed by a rollup for two on Morgan. The kickout sends Banks into the corner for the tag to Natalya and even more silence from the fans. Everything breaks down and Logan gets backdropped to the floor, followed by the running knees (now called the Meteora) from Sasha. Moon dives onto Riott, leaving Natalya to Sharpshooter Morgan for the tap at 14:23.

Rating: D+. Pretty long six woman tag here and that’s not the best thing in the world for these women. The fans weren’t really interested in what they had going on and really, can you blame them? Natalya is least charismatic veteran in years, Moon is just a big finisher and we’re waiting for Banks to fight Bayley after all these months. This felt like a way to pad out the show and that’s not the best idea, especially with Morgan getting a lot of the ring time.

Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler don’t like Finn Balor and Braun Strowman. Why not? Eh, they need something to do.

Revival vs. Matt Hardy/Bray Wyatt

Non-title. Wilder armdrags Matt to start, which has Matt so flabbergasted that he declares it WONDERFUL, earning a standing ovation. Cole makes fun of the Woken deal as the B Team is watching in the back. Bray uppercuts Dawson to set up the backsplash, followed by a running headbutt/belly to back suplex combination for two. Wilder makes a blind tag and Revival starts in on the knee. A missed charge allows the hot tag to Wyatt and it’s a release Rock Bottom to plant Dawson. The Twist of Fate hits Wilder and the Kiss of Deletion (the double Downward Spiral) ends Dawson at 4:47.

Rating: C-. I feel so sorry for Revival but you had to know this was coming. They’re tailor made for the NXT style but they’re lucky to get five minutes on a show like Raw. There was nothing left for them to do in NXT though and this was as good as they’re going to get. Hardy and Wyatt are starting to get better as a team but you’re only going to get so much out of teaming together for a few months.

Here’s Sami Zayn to say that Prince Harry looks like him. That brings him to Bobby Lashley of all people, who is Mr. jacked up and intense. Lashley was gone for ten years and then made his return when Sami made his return to Raw. We see a still of Lashley’s delayed vertical suplex on Sami and that’s what gave him Vertigo. Sami busts out a doctor’s note (and reading glasses of course) which explains Vertigo to the fans. All of Sami’s recent issues have been because of that suplex and Sami can’t believe that Lashley is getting cheered.

We see a clip of the sitdown interview last week and Sami thinks Lashley wants to be him. The interview makes Sami think Lashley is hiding something so he got on Facebook to talk to Lashley’s sisters. They were nothing like what Lashley described and Lashley isn’t quite the person that he portrays himself to be either. Next week, the sisters will be here to show what Lashley really is.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Alexa Bliss vs. Mickie James vs. Bayley

Bayley gets knocked outside and we take a break less than thirty seconds in. Back with Bayley still getting double teamed and having her comeback cut off. As is customary, Mickie turns on Bliss with a rollup for two but they still get together to kick Bayley down. A double high crossbody gives Bayley an opening and a double Stunner over the ropes makes thins even worse.

Mickie gets dropped face first on the top rope but she’s still able to break up Bliss’ sunset flip. They all slug it out from their knees with Bayley getting the better of it, including ducking a shot so Bliss hits James. The Bayley to Belly gets two on Bliss with Mickie making the save. Mickie and Bayley fight on the floor but the distraction lets Bliss DDT Bayley for the pin at 9:09.

Rating: D. I wasn’t feeling this one but that’s often the case with these triple threat matches. This was the standard formula: two people get together to take over, get in a fight, and then someone gets a pin. Bliss winning is the right choice as you can have Bayley and Sasha do something else later on. Mickie and Bliss will still be friends because stuff like this never changes anything. The fans didn’t seem to care but, again, this isn’t the match that matters so the fans not being interested is expected.

We recap the opening segment.

Mahal is cleared to compete…so Reigns spears him through a wall.

Post break, Angle says the match must go on.

Finn Balor/Braun Strowman vs. Drew McIntyre/Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler and Balor start things off with a basement dropkick putting Dolph down. McIntyre comes in and wants to face Strowman, who comes in for what could be a heck of a showdown. But of course he tags straight back out to Ziggler and we take a break. Back with Balor knocking Ziggler to the floor but getting tripped by McIntyre. A neckbreaker sets up a chinlock before it’s back to McIntyre for a hard knee to the ribs.

Finn gets over for the tag to Strowman so house can be cleaned, including the heavy forearm to Ziggler’s chest. A very hard charge sends Strowman shoulder first into the post so Balor tags himself back in. There’s a Sling Blade to set up the Shotgun dropkick, allowing Finn to go up top. McIntyre breaks it up so Strowman runs him over, leaving Ziggler to pull Balor down for the pin at 12:27.

Rating: C. So that happened. Strowman and Balor don’t have any kind of history together but it’s supposed to be a big deal that they lost as a team. McIntyre still looks like he could be ready to face anyone at any time but instead, we’re stuck with this tag team because WWE insists on trying to find something that Ziggler doesn’t drag down.

We see the Jax/Rousey segment again. I’m hoping this is some NBC mandate.

Angle is on the phone with Stephanie and has a replacement for Jinder. Someone has called her though and now they’re getting another opportunity.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Elias vs. Bobby Lashley vs. ???

It’s Owens of course and he helps pound Lashley down it the corner. Lashley gets tossed and we take an early break. Back with Owens sending Lashley into the steps and dropping a backsplash on Elias for two. Lashley is back up as the fans chant for Bobby’s sisters. Elias sends Lashley outside and let’s stop for a song! He even has someone holding his mic while he plays the guitar but has to stop to knee Owens in the face.

Back in and Owens breaks up the vertical suplex on Elias so Lashley suplexes both of them at once. The fans still want to Walk With Elias and a sitout powerbomb to Owens has them rather pleased. Lashley makes a save and plants Elias but here’s Sami to pull him to the floor. Back inside, the frog splash ends Elias to send Owens on at 13:12.

Rating: C. Kind of a messy match here as these three aren’t exactly people who are going to have chemistry. Lashley’s booking continues to astound me a bit as he was supposed to be some big return and now he’s just a guy who uses a vertical suplex as a finisher. You can’t just give him the Dominator again? The match wasn’t anything special but at least the ending advances some stories and puts Owens in the ladder match.

Overall Rating: C-. Another passable yet completely flat show with Rollins being the lone highlight. The problem here is the same as it was last week: you have a bunch of matches designed to set up a match a month away, meaning this is another show where you don’t need to see any of this stuff because you can read the results and get everything you need t know. It’s not bad but it’s completely skippable, and that’s often a lot more annoying to get through.

Results

Seth Rollins b. Kevin Owens – Stomp

Bobby Roode b. Baron Corbin and No Way Jose – Glorious DDT to Jose

B Team b. Breezango – Belly to back suplex/neckbreaker combination to Fandango

Sasha Banks/Natalya/Ember Moon b. Riott Squad – Sharpshooter to Morgan

Bray Wyatt/Matt Hardy b. Revival – Kiss of Deletion to Dawson

Alexa Bliss b. Mickie James and Bayley – DDT to Bayley

Dolph Ziggler/Drew McIntyre b. Finn Balor/Braun Strowman – Slam off the top to Balor

Kevin Owens b. Bobby Lashley and Elias – Frog splash to Elias

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Armageddon 2003
Date: December 14, 2003
Location: TD Waterhouse Centre, Orlando, Florida
Attendance: 12,672
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

We’ll wrap up the pay per view schedule for the year here with another show that is hardly inspiring. The main event here is a triple threat match between Raw World Champion Goldberg, HHH and Kane, because why have one challenger who can’t bring out the best in Goldberg when you can have two? I’m almost scared of how lame this could be so let’s get to it.

Here’s the go home Raw if you need a recap.

The Fink opens us up. Fink: “Would you please rise TO HONOR THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA???” Lillian Garcia does her usual great rendition but I don’t have the urge to punch a French guy, meaning it’s kind of a failure on WWE’s part. This is the day after Saddam Hussein was caught so it’s not as random as it seems.

The opening video is your standard collection of Bible verses about Armageddon and as expected, it’s all about the triple threat.

Booker T. vs. Mark Henry

Booker goes aggressive to start with a long series of right hands and is shoved down just as fast. We even get a rare Booker T. chant until Henry clotheslines him to the floor to calm them right back down. A whip sends Booker into the steps but he’s right back up with a slingshot dive to take Henry out. Back in and the missile dropkick puts Henry down again as the fans are sticking with this one early on.

Teddy Long offers a distraction though and Henry runs Booker over to cut him off and the pace slows right back down. We hit a modified bow and arrow for a bit before a running crotch attack to Booker’s back has him in even more trouble. Back in and we hit the chinlock as Henry isn’t exactly known for his varied offense. He mixes things up (by his standards at least) with a bearhug. See now he’s squeezing a different part of Booker so it’s a completely different style.

A hard clothesline cuts off Booker’s comeback but the legdrop misses. Booker’s bicycle kick sets up an ax kick for two in what might have been his big shot. Henry grabs a spinebuster and nearly collapses when covering for two. Dude it’s eight minutes into the match. You shouldn’t be that tired. Now the legdrop is good for two and Henry hits a jackknife of all things, which looked more like Booker slipped than being intentional. Possibly out of fear of his safety, Booker hits another ax kick for the pin.

Rating: D+. Henry has been wrestling for going on eight years at this point and somehow he’s still not getting better. The power moves look good in spurts but the powerbomb looked horrible (not to mention dangerous) and you can only do so much squeezing in a nine minute match. At least Booker won though and Henry can drop back down to the midcard (at best) where he belongs.

Eric Bischoff is livid and gives Christian and Chris Jericho a pep talk for their mixed tag later tonight. Jericho looks hesitant but here’s Mick Foley in the arena to cut them off. Foley talks about how he’s here in Orlando to deliver his first pay per view as co-manager (I’m sure he’ll be yelled at for getting the title wrong.) of Raw. The Steve Austin petition has now broken one million signatures and that means it’s time for a celebration. Cue Stacy Keibler as a cheerleader for a series of cartwheels and the obvious visual appeal.

With Foley picking Stacy up, here are Randy Orton and Ric Flair to interrupt. Orton holds that Foley didn’t pull anything because he’ll need to be ready to count the pin in the Intercontinental Title match. Austin is gone because Orton got rid of him at Survivor Series so it’s time to crown a new champion. Foley says Orton wants to go so let’s have the title match right now.

Intercontinental Title: Randy Orton vs. Rob Van Dam

Orton is challenging and Foley is guest referee. Rob sweeps the leg to start and Orton is already taking a breather on the floor. Back in and they hit a technical sequence with Orton not being able to do anything and leading to a standoff. Rob goes with what he does best and kicks Orton down. Another kick sets up a running flip dive to the floor as Orton can’t get much going so far.

Rob gets caught on top and shoved into the barricade though, which happens to him far too often. Then again it’s not like wrestlers are people who learn very well in the first place. Flair gets in some choking from the floor and Foley yells at him, which just lets Orton hammer away even more. We hit the chinlock (requirement fulfilled) for a good while until Rob gets two off a rollup.

Orton throws him onto his shoulder for a powerbomb but takes a step forward into a neckbreaker for a cool move. That means another chinlock until Rob fights up with a spinwheel kick. Rob (with his ponytail nearly out in a rare look) slugs away in the corner and gets two off a northern lights suplex, sending Orton bailing to the floor again.

The breather works as Orton grabs the hanging DDT back inside and yells at Foley on the two count. As you might guess, Van Dam kicks him down again and hits Rolling Thunder but has to kick Flair away. There’s the stepover kick to set up the Five Star but another Flair distraction lets Orton crotch Rob. The RKO gives Orton the pin and the title.

Rating: C+. This is the perfect role for Rob: he can keep the title warm and give you a good match to make a bigger and better name champion. Orton had to win here as it’s high time to make him look like he has more than potential. Evolution looks better here too as the team has a second champion instead of HHH and three lackeys. Good match, even with Rob being his pretty usual self. Then again, it’s not like he cranked it up to another level most of the time in WWE.

Orton’s post match celebration makes the title seem like a huge deal as he seems blown away by winning it. You don’t see that often enough.

We recap the battle of the sexes with Jericho and Christian romancing Trish Stratus and Lita to some success. It turned out to be a bet between the guys though, which crushed both women and broke their hearts. Now though, Jericho seems to be having second thoughts, even as Bischoff has set up this mixed tag.

Chris Jericho/Christian vs. Trish Stratus/Lita

Jericho tries to talk his way out of trouble with Trish but gets slapped, setting up the forearms that you would expect from Sapphire instead of a multiple time Women’s Champion. That earns Trish a spanking so she kicks him away and slaps him in the head. Some bad dropkicks have Jericho in trouble so it’s off to Lita vs. Christian. Lita slaps him as well and then runs away, followed by some equally lame forearms.

A headscissors puts Christian down but Jericho gets in a cheap shot from the apron in a good heel move. It’s off to Jericho for some trash talking and some standing on Lita’s hair. A powerbomb is countered into a loose hurricanrana for two and Lita loses her top to the delight of both Lawler and the fans. Lita finally gets smart with a low blow, allowing the tag to Trish who thankfully throws the forearms that she would throw in matches instead of like she’s a terrified schoolgirl.

The Chick Kick rocks Christian and Jericho gets crotched on top. He’s fine enough to block the Stratusphere but Christian gets sent into Jericho. That’s enough for two off a rollup but a hard clothesline takes Trish’s head off. Lita comes back in with a hurricanrana, only to have Jericho make a save. Jericho checks on Trish and seems to show some sympathy until Christian rolls Trish up for the pin.

Rating: D+. This was two different matches in one as the first half felt like something out of Memphis in 1974 and the second felt like it could have been interesting. In other words, once Trish and Lita realized they were Trish Stratus and Lita rather than fans in over their heads, it got a lot better. If that was the case throughout, this could have been a fun underdog match but for what we got, it was too little two late.

We recap Shawn Michaels vs. Batista. Shawn was trying to survive for Team Austin at Survivor Series when Batista interfered and cost him the match. Batista wasn’t done though and beat Shawn up some more, setting up the match tonight. In other words, they’re hoping Shawn can pull off a good match to make Batista look better than he is. I mean, it’s not the worst idea in the world.

Shawn Michaels vs. Batista

Shawn goes with the speed to start and snaps off some rights and lefts in the corner to annoy Batista. More punches get the same result and a slide between Batista’s legs allows Shawn to punch Ric Flair out. Things reset a bit and this time Batista goes with power in the form of some knees in the corner.

Flair goes into cheerleader mode as Batista starts in on the back with a hard whip, followed by just driving an elbow into the side of Shawn’s head. Shawn blocks a belly to back superplex though and gets two off a moonsault press (which was a foot or so off center). There’s the nip up so Batista takes it outside for a whip into the steps to put Shawn down again. They’re doing well with the power vs. heart/experience idea here.

Some backbreakers get Batista back to where he was going before with Flair losing his mind that the referee hasn’t stopped it yet. Back up and Shawn hits the forearm into the nip up before countering a chokebomb into a DDT. The top rope elbow connects but Sweet Chin Music is countered into a spinebuster. That means it’s Batista Bomb time but Shawn slips out and nails Sweet Chin Music for the pin.

Rating: C. This was a shorter version of Orton vs. Michaels from a few months back and that’s the right way to go. I can live with Evolution not winning every match and Shaw using the experience and intelligence to win over a muscle head like Batista makes enough sense. If nothing else just have Batista power through some nitwit and he’ll be fine.

Post match Batista is so out of it that he thinks he won and here’s Maven for a match added on Heat. One beatdown later and Maven is done, meaning Matt Hardy (whose fingernails grow very quickly), his opponent for tonight, can get a forfeit win. That’s the fast track version of getting Batista back to normal.

In the back, a very sweaty Flair has to calm Batista down and say that Batista is better than Shawn. Everyone trips, but the good ones get back in the game. Flair has an idea and says they’re both leaving with titles. Thanks for the spoiler Naitch.

Tag Team Titles: Tag Team Turmoil

Gauntlet match for the titles with the Dudleys defending. La Resistance vs. Rosey/The Hurricane starts things off with Conway slugging at Hurricane to start. A low bridge puts Hurricane on the floor as the USA chants begin. As usual, the fact that two Americans are currently wrestling goes completely over their heads. Dupree comes in and now that the chants are more appropriate, they starts dying down.

Hurricane gets in an X Factor and tags in Rosey to as much of a reaction as a tag to Rosey is going to draw about two minutes into a match. Rosey splashes Conway and dumps Dupree over the top before getting on the middle rope. Hurricane gets on his shoulders for a big splash to pin Dupree. Mark Jindrak and Garrison Cade come in third and roll Hurricane up for the pin in about four seconds.

Lance Storm and Val Venis are in fourth with Venis and Jindrak starting things off. That goes nowhere so Garrison and Lance trade armdrags and headlocks. The BORING chants begin and you can see the empty seats from people hitting the concession stands. One heck of a left hand breaks up a springboard and Jindrak come in to crank on Storm’s arms. A missed charge allows the hot tag to Venis as everything breaks down. The Blue Thunder Bomb gets two on Jindrak so Venis tries a suplex but falls victim to the Rick Rude/Ultimate Warrior finish for the pin.

It’s the Dudley Boyz in fifth to clean house with Cade getting caught in the Tree of Woe and Bubba abusing his chest. Jindrak comes in for one heck of a clothesline on D-Von and it’s off to the chinlock. A top rope elbow hits D-Von but “misses” and the hot tag brings in Bubba. Everything breaks down and Jindrak rolls D-Von up for two, only to have the 3D send the Dudleys on. Cade decks both Dudleys as Scott Steiner and Test are in sixth. The villains come in with little resistance and Steiner’s push-up elbow gets two.

It’s off to a Fujiwara armbar of all things before Test comes in for some stomping. A regular armbar has as much effect so Bubba throws him down for a breather. The middle rope backsplash ACTUALLY connects for two on Test and it’s back to D-Von to pick things up a bit. A rollup gets two on Test but he’s right back with the full nelson slam for two. With the wrestling not working, Test does the old throw in the belt so you can use a chair spot for two on D-Von. The Bubba Bomb hits Test though and D-Von gets the pin to retain.

Well hang on a second as here’s Bischoff that we have a seventh team. In case you’re really slow, it’s Flair and Batista as evil bosses are still evil bosses. The beatdown is on with Flair putting Ray in the Figure Four and the Batista Bomb pinning D-Von. Evolution was in there for about thirty seconds.

Rating: D. This was long and uneventful until the screwy finish. The problem was the same as usual with most gauntlet matches: there’s nothing to the matches because they have to go so fast and in this case, most of the teams are so lame that it’s not exactly something worth watching. This could have been much worse with less time but still, just a screwy way to set up the ending of the show.

Video on the Tribute to the Troops announcement.

Women’s Title: Ivory vs. Molly Holly

Molly is defending in a match that I don’t think was even mentioned coming into the show. Ivory sends her out to the floor to start as the announcers debate sexual frustration. A dropkick to the leg knocks Ivory face first into the apron so the champ can take over. It’s off to an armbar and the discussion is off to Molly drinking prune juice. There’s a handspring elbow to Ivory as you can see even more empty seats now than during the tag match. Ivory sends her face first into the buckle for two but Molly reverses into a rollup with the tights for the pin to retain.

Rating: D. There’s no story and they had four minutes. What else can you expect from a match like this? It’s not their fault here as they were put in a match to fill in time and given nothing to work with, meaning the deck was entirely stacked against them. The division needs some fresh blood and Ivory isn’t the right person to challenge for the title.

We recap the World Title match. Goldberg is defending, HHH is HHH and Kane decided to attack Goldberg so HHH could say it was a different match when he gets the title back again.

Raw World Title: HHH vs. Kane vs. Goldberg

One fall to a finish. The bell rings and they stand around staring at each other for a long time. After a minute of standing there, Goldberg walks to HHH and Kane walks to Goldberg, allowing HHH to jump the champ from behind. The double teaming is on as we’re waiting on who gets to cover Goldberg. A clothesline takes HHH down and a powerslam does the same to Kane as the fans are trying to get into this.

Kane sits up so Goldberg knocks him down again, followed by doing the same to HHH. Goldberg slams Kane off the top for a bonus and powerslams HHH for no cover. The distraction lets Kane get in a big boot and some right hands to Goldberg as I’m not expecting much of a story to break out here. A double suplex drops Goldberg and HHH covers for two, much to Kane’s annoyance.

Kane clotheslines HHH to the floor by mistake so HHH chairs him in the back, breaking up a chokeslam to Goldberg in the process. Goldberg takes the chair from HHH and wraps it around his ankle but Kane breaks up the Pillmanization. They head outside with Goldberg trying a Jackhammer through the table, only to be broken up with a chair to the ribs from HHH. You know, because why would you want Goldberg to get rid of Kane and then wear him out with the chair in your hands and a free shot?

HHH elbows Goldberg through the table but winds up in front of Kane while holding the chair that he used to put him down. Kane beats on HHH a bit as this just keeps going. They head inside with HHH getting beaten up some more, including the side slam for no cover. The chokeslam is blocked by a poke to the eye and a DDT plants Kane. That’s enough for the ring so they head up the ramp with Kane chokeslamming him there instead. Goldberg is finally back up and spearing Kane as they come back inside for two with HHH making the save.

It’s a three way slugout with Goldberg getting the better of it, including a double clothesline to take both guys down. There’s another spear to Kane and one to HHH, drawing in Evolution for a distraction. They’re quickly dispatched so Goldberg and Kane choke each other until HHH hits Goldberg low. Kane chokeslams the champ but Batista pulls him to the floor, allowing HHH to get the pin and the title. Merry Christmas to us.

Rating: D+. Much like the whole show, this was much more dull and boring than bad. There was a grand total of zero doubt that HHH would win as you have the Evolution title dominance to go with HHH not being World Champion in a few months, which is completely unacceptable. This was as good as “you hit me, I hit him, he hits you, now we switch” for twenty minutes was going to be, which should tell you everything you need to know.

Evolution celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. There are worse shows, but this was 2003 Raw in a nutshell: a lot of Evolution, a good match here and there, but the whole thing is just so slow paced that nothing is really exciting. Also, much like a lot of the shows on the year, it barely broke two and a half hours, including the National Anthem. These one brand pay per views aren’t ready yet and that’s getting more and more obvious every single time they’re out there. These things need to be closer to two hours than three, but then they couldn’t charge as much and that wouldn’t be good, much like this show.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: December 11, 2003
Location: San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’re now on the way to the Royal Rumble and that means….well it probably means that the show takes a few weeks off. Last week saw Chris Benoit fall just short of winning the Smackdown World Title from Brock Lesnar, who now gets to move on to Hardcore Holly. A main event in probably no arena in the country. Let’s get to it.

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

We open on a very close shot of Paul Heyman as he says Chris Benoit will never get another shot at the WWE Title as long as Heyman is General Manager.

Opening sequence.

Heyman is in the ring to get things going. He’s going to follow a tradition and build Smackdown on the back of Brock Lesnar. Vince McMahon Sr. built the company on the back of Bruno Sammartino and Vince McMahon Jr. built his company on the backs of Hulk Hogan and Steve Austin. Last week Chris Benoit got a little too close to destroying Heyman’s vision so there will be no more title shots at this man.

Brock comes out and smiles a lot as you can see the YOU TAPPED OUT signs in the crowd. Just in case that’s not enough, the accompanying chants start up as well. Lesnar rants about demanding respect and says it was Benoit who tapped out to him. We see a clip of Benoit “tapping” after passing out and Lesnar rants against the fans, only showing why he shouldn’t be allowed to talk that often. Lesnar says he has a chant for the fans here in Mexico, even though Heyman says we’re in San Diego. Lesnar: “It looks like Mexico out here!”

Cue Rey Mysterio to say he won’t let Lesnar make fun of his people and his family. Rey is here to issue a challenge for tonight and that means a 619 chant. Lesnar doesn’t agree so testicle jokes are made, which is enough to get the match made, albeit non-title of course. Brock does throw in a bonus: if Rey can win tonight, he can have a title shot next week. That’s cool with Rey, who promises a 619 chant next week. Perfectly fine for a one/two week story.

Rhyno vs. Bradshaw

Fallout from a Gore on Velocity. Bradshaw forearms him into the corner to start and gets two off a suplex. The threat of a Clothesline sends Rhyno bailing to the floor but he comes back in with a DDT for two. For reasons of general idiocy, Rhyno goes up top, allowing Bradshaw to hit a super fall away slam to take over again. A superplex plants Rhyno and they lay on the mat for a few seconds before Bradshaw lifts his legs, allowing Rhyno to turn it into a small package for the pin. That didn’t look contrived in the slightest.

Rating: D. Believe it or not I actually had some expectations here as these two could have a decent, short power match. For some reason though they couldn’t even do that right and it made for a lame outing, especially for the ending. Bad match here, which is actually a bit of a surprise.

Paul Heyman is with A-Train and Matt Morgan and mentions that he’s gotten rid of Nathan Jones. No reason is given, but he quit the company while on tour in Australia. Anyway A-Train needs to prove himself to make up for betting against Brock last week so he’s going to face Shannon Moore. Morgan tells him not to blow it.

The Bashams want to bet on themselves in their Tag Team Title defense next week, which nearly leads to a fight with the FBI over Shaniqua being rough with the money. Didn’t she dump them? They leave so Matt Morgan comes in to put everything he has on A-Train against Moore. Pretty obvious payoff but it might work here.

A-Train vs. Shannon Moore

Shannon has taped up ribs so A-Train punches him in the bandages and hits a splash in the corner. A spinning crossbody to the back puts A-Train down but A-Train tosses him outside and hits the ribs again. Back in and Shannon grabs a quick sunset flip for the clean fluke pin.

Post match here are Morgan and Big Show to beat up Moore but A-Train takes a beating of his own.

Cat is getting ready to dance.

Highlights of the Asia/Australia tour.

Here’s Lamont to introduce Cat to dance with Sable. Therefore here’s Sable, who says she’s not dancing for anyone but Vince McMahon. Cat isn’t happy so he kisses her, causing Sable to leave. That means Cat takes his pants off and dances. This might be the most “because Vince thinks it’s funny” segment in years.

Eddie Guerrero offers Chavo a Y J Stinger hat but promises to be serious. Chavo says his knee is feeling good enough that he doesn’t even need to tag Eddie in. They’re both going to steal the show.

Los Guerreros vs. World’s Greatest Tag Team

Eddie and Charlie start things off with neither being able to get the better of a technical off. Shelton comes in to try a test of strength as the EDDIE chants begin. Eddie gets the better of it and takes him down to the mat, legitimately injuring his shoulder in the process. Shelton gets sent into the corner so it’s off to Chavo as Eddie chokes from the apron. Shelton knocks him outside and opens the hood of the low rider in an attempt to crush Eddie’s arm. Well that certainly accelerated quickly.

With that not working, Shelton sends him arm first into the post and we take a very abrupt break. Back with Shelton slingshotting in to land on the arm again. Charlie lets Eddie over for the tag for some reason and it’s Chavo coming in to clean house. A headscissors drops Charlie and a middle rope twisting swanton gets two. Another armbar slows Charlie down but Shelton kicks out Chavo’s bad knee to take over again.

Shelton slingshots in onto the knee as at least they’re mixing up the leg work. We hit a half crab but Eddie gets creative by taking off the tag rope, which draws the referee over and allows Eddie to break up the hold. It’s not enough for the hot tag though as Shelton pulls Eddie off the apron. Back up and Eddie dives over Charlie for the real hot tag but the bad arm keeps things from their usual pace. A monkey flip doesn’t work on Shelton as he lands on his feet but a dropkick sends him into Haas.

Charlie is fine enough to superplex Eddie and everyone is down again. It’s Shelton up first to jump over Charlie and land on Eddie’s back but a one legged Chavo makes the save. Eddie is fine enough to hit the rolling suplexes but Chavo tags himself in and hits the frog splash on Shelton. Eddie takes his time leaving though and it’s only good for a delayed two. Back up and Shelton superkicks Chavo and covers but Chavo isn’t legal. The referee straightens things out so Eddie pulls the air filter from the low rider and knocks Shelton cold for the pin.

Rating: C+. The arm injury clearly slowed Eddie a lot but even a below peak condition Eddie is still better than most performers ever. Chavo’s jealously can continue with Eddie stealing the pin as the team continues to win but also continues to deteriorate. It’s going to make Eddie into a bigger deal and that’s what matters most.

Tribute to the Troops is announced. That’s still a really cool concept, but once it turned into a stateside event, it stopped feeling special.

Here’s Big Show, dressed like John Cena, for a battle rap. Cena comes out and Show does the slow paced rhyming, including saying that he’s 500lbs and is the Kobe Bryant to Cena’s white girl. Oh and his finger is bigger than Cena’s…..anyway moving on. Cena’s response: Show is fat, in various forms of funny insults. He throws in a low blow for good measure and bails. This really wasn’t funny, but it was better than the Cat segment.

We recap Brock vs. Benoit last week.

Benoit passed out instead of giving up last week and now he’s not sure if he’s ever going to get another title shot.

Rey Mysterio vs. Brock Lesnar

Non-title and Rey’s family is in the front row. Brock makes short jokes and takes his time in going after Mysterio. Eventually he grabs Rey by the foot and swings him into the corner because he’s just that big. Rey dropkicks the knee and sends a charging Lesnar face first into the middle buckle.

Brock snaps up and the chase is on until Brock finally stops and glares at him. This time he picks up the steps but Rey dropkicks them into his face. That’s about it for Rey’s offense though as Brock sends him into the post, only to get hurricanranaed to the floor. Brock gets sent into the post and Rey hits a dive off the apron and we take a break. Back with Brock catching a high crossbody and distracting the referee so he can get in a low blow. Cole is INCENSED that Brock would have to cheat and the stomping continues.

It’s off to a bodyscissors with a crossarm choke as Brock is dominating. He gets tired of the hold though and lets Rey up, allowing Mysterio to hit the 619 for a close two. A tilt-a-whirl headscissors and a standing hurricanrana give Rey two more but the West Coast Pop is countered into a powerbomb. The Brock Lock makes Rey tap.

Rating: C-. Mysterio was trying here and the match wasn’t bad, but there was no drama to the whole thing and that was pretty clear. It wouldn’t make sense to have Mysterio win here just because it was in his hometown and the amount of offense he got in was more than enough. Lesnar taunting him was fine and Mysterio didn’t get squashed so what more can you ask for?

Post match a fan, who was sitting with Mysterio’s family, runs in and it’s Hardcore Holly. The beating is on and some right hands send Brock outside to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Not a bad show but as is WWE tradition, the build for the next pay per view can’t begin until this one is over, even if there’s no connection between the two shows. Benoit is still trying to get to the title and Cena is stuck not challenging for the US Title but at least we’re getting some good stuff with Eddie and Brock. The show needs a fresh top challenger though and Holly….I think that says enough.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: May 10, 2018
Location: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness

How exactly do you have a full show when there was one major story getting attention all week? This was the first week of Money in the Bank qualifying matches and that means a lot of the matches will be shown here, along with all of the usual stuff we see around here. In other words, the same people having the same matches. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Tony Nese vs. Cedric Alexander

Non-title and Nese is the hometown boy. Hang on though as Nese needs to give Long Island the posing. Cedric flips over him and snaps off an armdrag but gets shouldered in the corner. A good dropkick has Nese in trouble but he’s fine enough to pull Alexander off the ropes for a crash. We hit the neck crank for a good while before Cedric fights up with a DDT. Nese tries to speed things up and sends Cedric outside for a big flip dive and two back inside. The Neuralizer rocks Nese though and the Lumbar Check is good for the pin at 5:58.

Rating: C. Why not make this a title match? Nese getting a shot wouldn’t be a stretch and it’s Alexander getting a clean win so why not? Give Main Event even the slightest spark and see where you can go. Have Cedric insist that the title is on the line or something. It’s simple and doesn’t change anything while giving the show a quick boost. Or just let us have the same boring show. Same thing really.

From Raw.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Strowman shoves Owens away to start, knocking the referee down in the process. Some whips into the corner knock Owens down twice in a row before sending him outside. Owens tries to bail into the crowd but manages to catch Strowman in a tornado DDT. Strowman beats the count at eight and Owens is losing his mind. Back in and Strowman hits him in the chest but Owens sends him outside again as we take a break. We come back with Strowman hitting the same kind of knockdown as he did earlier, only to get kicked in the head.

Owens gets two off a backsplash but Strowman pops up with a big boot. Strowman misses a charge into the corner and it’s a superkick into the bullfrog splash for two more. There’s another superkick but the Pop Up Powerbomb just isn’t happening. Instead it’s a splash in the corner and Owens bails outside. The running gag continues with Strowman shouldering him down three times in a row. Back in and the running powerslam sends Strowman to the ladder match at 8:42.

Rating: C. This wasn’t too bad with Owens getting in some offense before falling short. Strowman should be on his way to the Universal Title so hopefully this is a step in the right direction. However, there’s a good chance that Strowman is the guy who gets close to winning and comes up short while Lesnar holds the title for the better part of ever. You know, longer than he already has.

Also from Raw.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Roman Reigns vs. Finn Balor vs. Sami Zayn

Sami yells at Reigns to start and gets punched in the face to send him outside. Balor speeds things up and dropkicks Reigns down for two as the announcers debate how important Money in the Bank is compared to the rest of the year. More right hands drop Balor and Zayn as we take an early break. Back with Balor stomping on Reigns until Sami grabs a rollup for two.

There’s a Samoan drop to put Zayn on the floor with Balor on the opposite side. The fans start a TOO SWEET chant and the double beating is on to one of the strongest reactions of the night. Even Balor and Sami seem taken aback by the YES chants. The three head into the crowd and the fans are annoyed when Reigns comes back. A Helluva Kick knocks Reigns into the tech area and the other two head back inside to kill time until Reigns spears one of them.

The Blue Thunder Bomb gives Sami two but Balor fights back and they head to the floor. The fans start booing and I think you know what that means. Cue Reigns diving over the barricade to take Sami out but Balor drops Reigns again. Back in and Reigns hits the Superman Punch on Sami. The Sling Blade looks to set up the Coup de Grace but Reigns rolls away. Instead it’s another Superman Punch but here’s Mahal to trip Reigns. The distraction lets Sami hit the Helluva Kick to drop Reigns but Balor hit the shotgun dropkick and Coup de Grace on Sami for the pin at 15:25.

Rating: C. I like the surprise ending, if nothing else for the sake of needing to see Jinder vs. Reigns, potentially in Chicago, where the fans might be so confused that they break into small camps and stage full revivals of Broadway classics instead of watching the match. Balor going on makes sense and the question about where Owens was is interesting as well. One last question: is there a clause in Roman’s contract that lets him have a break during every multi-man match? It seems to happen every time.

One more time from Raw.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Ruby Riott vs. Ember Moon vs. Sasha Banks

Sasha and Ember get together to start and take Riott down, only to have Banks roll Moon up for two. Some rather athletic armdrags have Banks in trouble but Riott comes back in to send Sasha face first into the middle buckle. Sasha gets sent outside again as we hear about how successful Money in the Bank cash-ins have been. A double DDT plants Sasha and Moon for two each and it’s off to a chinlock on Moon. That’s broken up with a jawbreaker but here’s Sasha back in to run people over.

Banks stops to dive onto the Riott Squad though, allowing Riott to run her over. Moon hits a heck of a suicide dive for two on Riott as the fans are distracted by something in the crowd, which gets a YOU DESERVE IT chant. Back in and Banks gets two off a sunset flip with the Riott Squad coming in for the legal save. Cue Bayley to help Sasha but the Squad takes her out as well. Moon heads up top for an Eclipse to both Banks and Riott at the same time for the pin on Riott at 10:23.

Rating: D. This felt like an indy match with a bunch of disjointed spots and no flow to the match whatsoever. Moon winning is the right call as Riott could be getting a title shot at the pay per view and Sasha will possibly be busy with Bayley, or in the match later on. This wasn’t a good match though and the ending wasn’t as exciting as it should have been.

And from Smackdown.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Charlotte vs. Peyton Royce

Before the match, Billie says Charlotte’s loss made her uncle overcome his stutter because he was laughing so hard. Peyton tries to imitate the look but it’s only funny when Charlotte does it. They lock up to start with Charlotte shoving her around. A toss to the floor takes us to an early break. Back with Peyton grabbing a chinlock before choking in the corner. A half nelson over the ropes with her legs has Charlotte in even more trouble and we hit another chinlock. Charlotte fights up with a neckbreaker by the hair but misses a big boot (but Peyton doesn’t sell it like Carmella did on Sunday).

A rollup gets two on Peyton and Charlotte dives onto Billie, leaving Peyton to grab a swinging neckbreaker on the floor. The referee gets distracted by Peyton so Billie can snap Charlotte’s neck across the top, setting up a spinning kick to the face for two. Charlotte is right back with the big boot, only to have the moonsault hit knees. Royce kicks the knee out for two but gets speared down. The Figure Eight makes Peyton tap at 12:56.

Rating: B-. This was a nice surprise, if nothing else as I was getting worried that Charlotte would lose back to back matches. They went with the right call here though as Charlotte is more interesting and you can put Billie in the match later. Just having one of them in there basically means they’re both in there and that’s all you need.

Here’s Curt Hawkins to issue an open challenge. Hawkins talks about this being his hometown and his parents being in the crowd tonight. Fans: “WE WANT RYDER!”

Zack Ryder vs. Curt Hawkins

For once, Main Event serves a purpose. Hawkins tries a cheap shot and gets punched in the face, followed by an armbar. A faceplant sends Hawkins to the apron and he backdrops Ryder to the floor, sending us to a break. Back with Hawkins getting two and grabbing a chinlock. Ryder is right back up with a neckbreaker (The Wooude Awakening. I hate myself for liking that.) and the middle rope missile dropkick.

The Broski Boot connects for two but Hawkins sends the Rough Ryder into the buckle for two. If this weren’t Main Event, I’d have bought that as a near fall. Ryder is right back up with a middle rope hurricanrana and the Rough Ryder gets two with Hawkins’ boot going on the rope. Ryder looks stunned and another Broski Boot is blocked, allowing Hawkins to grab a rollup with feet on the ropes. That’s caught, allowing a second Rough Ryder to pin Hawkins at 9:04.

Rating: C+. Where in the world did that come from? That was an actually entertaining match with some near falls and Ryder got to win a match in his hometown. It was nice to see Ryder get a chance for once and not be humiliated. I know it’s not going to lead anywhere, but for an old Ryder fan like myself, who always thought he got a horrible ending to his push, this was nice for a nice.

Post match Ryder says he wants to represent WWE a Mr. Money in the Bank.

Back to Smackdown.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Jeff Hardy vs. The Miz

Non-title. Miz cranks on the arm to start as the announcers talk about Miz’s history in the Money in the Bank match. Jeff sends him outside and hits Poetry in Motion against the barricade but it’s way too early for the Swanton. We take a break and come back with Jeff holding an armbar as the pace stays slow. The Reality Check gets two on Jeff but he elbows out of a Skull Crushing Finale attempt.

They head outside with Jeff getting the better of a slugout as the sleeves of Jeff’s shirt make me want a rainbow pop. The legdrop between the legs and the Twisting Stunner rock Miz but again he gets out of the way before the Swanton. Miz slams him neck first onto the apron and we take another break.

Back again with Jeff jawbreaking his way out of a chinlock and getting two off the Whisper in the Wind. A baseball slide knocks Miz to the floor but again he avoids the Swanton, this time with a good crotching. Instead it’s a sunset bomb for two as the back and forth continues. The Twist of Fate gets two and a corner dropkick sets up Hardiac Arrest (the other corner dropkick). Another Twist of Fate sets up the Swanton for real this time, but Miz rolls him up for the pin at 20:16.

Rating: B. First of all, good back and forth match. Now for the problem (and I’d bet on this being right): this isn’t going to mean a thing as far as the US Title is confirmed. The champion just got pinned clean and I have a feeling we’re not going to hear a word about Miz wanting to be champion. Money in the Bank has done this before and it makes things all the dumber. Miz just pinned the US Champion clean and I’d be actually surprised if anything happens to the title as a result. I really hope I’m wrong, but odds are that’s where this is going.

And one more time from the blue show.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Daniel Bryan vs. Rusev

Bryan starts in on the legs early on and kicks the arm out for good measure. Some more kicks sends Rusev outside so Bryan tries the suicide dive, only to be caught and thrown over the announcers’ table as we take a break. Back with Rusev throwing him around some more but getting dropkicked in the corner.

The Spinning Rock Bottom doesn’t work so Rusev kicks him in the head for two instead. A quick YES Lock sends Rusev bailing to the ropes and Aiden English is rather relieved. Rusev heads outside so Bryan hits the running knee off the apron for two. Back in and the running knee misses, setting up a Machka Kick to give Rusev the completely clean pin at 11:20.

Rating: C+. Uh…..huh? I’m not sure how the reaction to this one is going to go as Rusev winning a big match is nice, but Bryan losing clean almost has to be leading somewhere. You don’t have Bryan come in here and lose like that, but maybe they have something planned. If nothing else, I’m sure Miz has something to say about that loss.

Bryan looks devastated to end the show. It seems like they have something planned there.

Overall Rating: C-. Sweet goodness I know I said they were going to have one idea around here but egads I was expecting something more than that one idea. It would be nice to mix things up a little bit but when you only have that one idea on both shows, you’re kind of stuck. Throw in Backlash being Backlash and is there any wonder that this week’s shows didn’t do very well? Ryder vs. Hawkins was fun though and you almost never get that on Main Event.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

205 Live
Date: May 8, 2018
Location: Royal Farms Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Percy Watson, Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

You can really feel things getting back into a lull around here and that’s not a good thing to have happen so soon after Wrestlemania. It seems that every week features a tag match that doesn’t change anything about the story they’re telling. There’s nothing for them to do long term but there’s not enough depth to set up an official division. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at the three matches scheduled for tonight, which works well in setting things up but doesn’t exactly have me wanting to see the show.

Opening sequence.

The announcers talk about the big fight feel in the air. Buddy Murphy vs. Mustafa Ali is not a big fight.

Gran Metalik/Lince Dorado vs. Brian Kendrick/Jack Gallagher

Speaking of tag matches that seem to be on a treadmill. Hang on though as Drew Gulak comes out for commentary. Dorado headscissors Gallagher down as Gulak calls Lince “Lindsay Dorito”. Jack tries to handstand up but gets spanked right back down. A pinfall reversal sequence has Gulak annoyed because he finds it silly. Metalik comes bouncing in for a dropkick to the face, which Gulak refers to as wasting time. Kendrick gets sent outside for a big flip dive but Gallagher offers a distraction so Brian can get in an enziguri.

It’s off to Gallagher for an arm crank as Kalisto plays with the noisemaker at ringside. Some kicks to the face get Metalik out of trouble though and the hot tag brings in Dorado to clean house. Gulak is NOT pleased with the high flying, including the Golden Rewind for two. Gallagher’s dropkick sets up the Sliced Bread #2 for two on Dorado as Metalik makes the save. Stereo suicide dives take out the bad guys and the shooting star gives Lince the pin on Gallagher at 7:49. Gulak: “Let him try that on me.”

Rating: D+. Like I said earlier: you can only do these same matches so many times before they stop meaning anything. There wasn’t anything special about this one but it feels like something I’ve seen over and over again. It’s not a bad match or anything, but it’s just doing the same matches time after time with no one actually getting anywhere. Change that or stop doing the matches.

Mustafa Ali was standing on some train tracks saying the path leads straight to Buddy Murphy. Buddy is built for show but Ali is built for go. He wants the Cruiserweight Title. These out of arena promos are a really good idea.

Murphy gives Tony Nese a pep talk and Nese wishes him luck. Tony leaves and Murphy says he hopes Cedric Alexander is watching tonight.

Tony Nese vs. Keith Clayball

Nese throws him into the corner to start as Nigel says he’s heard a lot about Clayball. Vic: “OH YOU HAVE???” Clayball is tied in the Tree of Woe for a bunch of kicks, including the crunches kicks. A hard elbow runs Clayball over again and an even harder forearm on the floor rocks him again. Back in and the running knee in the corner grazes Clayball’s forearm (Missing his head by a good six inches with the announcers saying it barely touched him. Terrible camera work there as the camera should have stayed in its regular position but switched to a side shot instead, showing how it was designed to miss.) for the pin at 3:04.

Rating: D. Well that ending was horrible looking (totally on the cameras and not the wrestlers) but this was just a boring squash with Nese getting back on the winning side before he gets to put someone else over. A match like this is a good idea but there’s not much you can do here, which is why keeping it so short is the right move.

Video on Hideo Itami, whose attitude is changing. Thank goodness, but it’s about three years too late.

Cedric is with Drake Maverick, who says the UK stars will be here next week when the show is in London.

Buddy Murphy vs. Mustafa Ali

They circle each other to start and Ali’s chop doesn’t have much effect. Murphy muscles him into the corner and tries a powerbomb, only to get hurricanranaed out to the floor. The baseball slide dropkick sends Murphy into the announcers’ table but a suplex on the floor cuts Ali off in a hurry.

Back in and a high backdrop has Ali in more trouble as Cedric is watching backstage. In a bit of a mind game, Murphy loads up a running kick to the back but stops for a chinlock instead. Back up and they both try a high crossbody for a double knockdown. It’s Ali up first with a dropkick and running forearm but the rolling X Factor is cut off with a sleeper for a smart counter. Ali reverses into a sleeper of his own but Murphy gets smart again, this time cannonballing himself, and Ali, into the corner for the break.

A tornado DDT plans Murphy again for two so he hits a DDT of his own for the save. This trading big spots is starting to work for me. That’s enough for Murphy, who powerbombs Ali three times in a row for a near knockout. Ali says don’t stop it though so Murphy tries another powerbomb, which is reversed into a big X Factor for two more.

With nothing else working, Ali takes him to the top but gets shoved to the floor, backflipping onto his feet because of course he does. Murphy dives into a superkick for two but the 450 onto the arm, which he used to beat Murphy in the tournament, misses. That bangs up Ali’s own arm and Murphy is right on it, only to be elbowed in the face. Ali is sent HARD into the post and Murphy’s Law is good for the pin at 15:46.

Rating: B. They need to get the title on one of these two ASAP as Alexander just doesn’t have the charisma to match either of them. Murphy is getting better and better every time and you can pencil Ali in for a good match almost every time. The match was more entertaining stuff, and if they cut off about two minutes, this would have been even better. Solid main event though.

Overall Rating: C+. We’re right back where we were before the tournament started: one good match a week and almost nothing else on the rest of the show worth mentioning. The tag stuff is nothing they haven’t done before and Nese is a midcarder at best. It’s the lack of stories aside from the title match that keeps holding them down and I’m not sure why WWE doesn’t get that. As a bonus, you can only see the same people rotated in and out for so long before it stops having any meaning. We passed that point about a year ago. I’m not sure how to fix this show, but it’s back to not being worth your time.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

A few weeks before Wrestlemania, rumors began to surface. A mass exodus from Impact Wrestling was on the horizon, with the piece de resistance being the potential WWE return of Bobby Lashley. When the rumors were proven to be true, it should have been enormous news, but there was a major problem.

Bobby Lashley had returned.

It’s now almost two months later and Lashley’s return has fallen flatter than Titus O’Neill on a ramp. Easy jokes aside, let’s take a look at why the return has been such a failure.

First off, we must look at the return itself. In the world of WWE, MMA is currently king. Brock Lesnar is Universal Champion, Shayna Bazler is NXT Women’s Champion, and Ronda Rousey is treated as the biggest coup to the women’s division ever. In Bobby Lashley, you have a man who has been successful in the world of MMA, to the tune of a 15-2 record in his career. He’s every bit the legitimate fighter that Brock Lesnar is, but in the two months he’s been back, I can’t think of one instance where his MMA background has been mentioned. Not one.

Without that MMA background, he’s just Bobby Lashley, a guy that hasn’t been seen in WWE for about a decade. What was he doing in the decade away, baking cookies?

Now, I might be able to look the other way on this glaring omission if the re-debut itself positioned Lashley in a positive way. It did not.

Perception is everything in wrestling. Think back to 1999. In WCW, Chris Jericho was in the cruiserweight division and everyone in that division was positioned as such that they were less than the “important” members of the roster. They were a side show, and they would always be the side show. Realizing this, Chris Jericho left WCW to join the WWE. Now, had WWE debuted Jericho in a segment with Taka Michinoku in their Light Heavyweight division, I’m sure he would have done ok in that role, but he again would be treated as someone that lacks importance. Instead, the WWE chose to debut him in a segment with their biggest star, The Rock. This told the audience right away that Jericho was important, not fodder.

Conversely, the returning Bobby Lashley returned as the latest guy to interrupt Elias, which, while fun, tells the audience that he’s just like everyone else. Midcarders galore had interrupted the former drifter, so those new to Lashley see him as just another guy annoyed by the midcard heel.

Imagine though, if instead, his return went something like this: Paul Heyman is gloating in the ring about how even WWE’s golden boy Roman Reigns couldn’t defeat Brock Lesnar. No WRESTLER can beat Brock Lesnar…….and cue Lashley’s music. Out he comes, with Michael Cole explaining how Lashley is back after a decade of dominating in MMA. He stands toe to toe with Lesnar and they fight with no one getting the upper hand. They are pulled apart and the segment ends.

In this scenario, Lashley looks like a killer and a savior, and you don’t even have to follow up on that segment for months. That feud is ready to go when you want, and Lashley in the meantime looks like an enormous deal and someone to fear.

Going back to reality, we got Lashley the former star and quite honestly, he didn’t look or seem any different than he was in 2008. That’s not a good thing, considering his run from that time period was largely mediocre due to his total lack of personality. To alter that perception, this past Monday WWE decided to air an interview with Lashley to show the fans “what he’s all about”. What we got was an awkward sit-down where Lashley showed no range of emotion and told stories about his sisters. I suppose this is supposed to make us see him as a “family man”, but this is another case of WWE not understanding what they have.

The presentation of a Bobby Lashley should be simple. He’s similar to Brock Lesnar in that he’s huge, a successful athlete, and powerful. He also sounds like a 12-year-old when he speaks, so limiting that is always for the best. All you need to do is show him killing people and give him reason to do so. For a good idea of how, see how TNA booked him (yes, I’m praising TNA. Enjoy it while it lasts because it won’t happen often).

As it stands, we have a musclebound midcarder who’s happy to be back after a long hiatus, and one who’s first run we can’t even talk about because he once wrestled on behalf of our current US President. This is fixable though with an eventual turn on Braun Strowman. Maybe then we’ll get the Bobby Lashley we all want to see. It certainly can’t be any worse than the flop of a run we’re getting now.

Eric Cordova is the host of the Mouth of the South Shore Radio Show which can be found and followed at:

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: May 10, 2018
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentator: Josh Matthews

We’re still dealing with the Redemption fallout while also starting the build towards Slammiversary. Tonight’s big deal is Eli Drake cashing in his Feast or Fired briefcase for the World Title shot against Pentagon Jr. You also have Austin Aries roaming around near the title and some other people aren’t far behind. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with Josh Matthews in the studio talking about Sami Callihan wrecking a recent ceremony in Don Callis’ honor. Apparently Sami is livid at Callis for throwing in the towel to save Eddie Edwards at the WrestleCon show and wanted revenge.

There’s currently a meeting going on regarding Sami’s future. We’ll cut into whatever to let you know the outcome.

It’s off to the ceremony in Toronto with Anthony Carelli (Santino Marella) giving Callis an award. Cue Sami to attack Callis and beat him down while busting him open. Fine angle, but Callis has been on camera around here for less than a month. That’s quite a lot of faith to bet on fans caring about something like this.

The regular opening video talks about Drake vs. Pentagon.

Opening sequence.

Andrew Everett/DJZ vs. LAX

Santana and DJZ start things off with a rather speedy exchange until Ortiz comes in for some double teaming to take over. It’s off to Everett for a failed fireman’s carry gutbuster as Santana is keeping his eyes open for anyone trying to interfere. Santana’s cutter gives Everett two and Josh gives us updates on the meeting: it’s still going on. I’ll take nothing new Josh over nitwit/stupid/self praising Josh. Everett rolls over into a kick to Santana before rolling over to DJZ for the tag.

DJZ sends them together so Ortiz DDTs Santana in that spot that is still so stupidly contrived. A double kick takes DJZ down but a double kick takes LAX down. Everything breaks down and DJZ tornado DDTs Ortiz, only to walk into a Santana superkick. Everett hits a very good looking top rope Asai moonsault to drop Ortiz but Ortiz is up a few moments later for a suicide flip dive. The Street Sweeper is broken up and DJZ rolls Ortiz up for the pin at 8:28.

Rating: B-. This is a good idea as there’s only so much you can do with a two or three team tag division. Everett and DJZ aren’t breaking the mold or anything we haven’t seen before but the division needs bodies right now and there’s nothing wrong with that. LAX’s downward spiral is interesting and I’m kind of curious to see what’s behind the whole thing. Nice match too.

Grado is still waiting on his girlfriend but Joseph Park says he smells a rat. Cue Katie Lea Burchill/Winter (now known as Katarina) name she’s going by now to hug Grado and say she’ll see “James” (Park) later.

Austin Aries wants Eli Drake to win tonight because he knows he can beat him.

Rohit Raju vs. Grado

Before Josh can say it: WHO IS THE DESI HIT SQUAD AND WHY SHOULD I CARE? Raju jumps Grado while he gives Katarina his hat but can’t suplex the rather rotund one. Some running boots to the face in the corner give Raju two and we hit the chinlock. Grado is back with a side slam and a falling splash, which Josh calls unique. That would be true, if Ortiz didn’t do the same thing in the previous match.

We go split screen for a second to show that the meeting is still going. Grado takes too much time with his dancing punches and gets kneed in the face. A swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker gets two but Grado is right back with an elbow to the head and the Cannonball for the pin at 5:39.

Rating: D. I never cared for Grado in the first place and now I’m not sure if he’s supposed to be a heel or a face. By nature he’s a face but if you put a hot manager with anyone, it’s going to make them a heel almost by default. Unless Katarina is with him to stay in the country or just using him or something, I’m not sure I get this.

Joseph Park is the latest X victim. Given that one of his finishers is called Weapon X, Cage is a possible suspect.

Video on Tessa Blanchard, who has wrestling in her blood and has to be the best.

Eli Drake and Scott Steiner are in the back with Drake saying tonight, he becomes the new belt collector. Steiner doesn’t like the idea of Drake saying he’ll do this himself.

Drago vs. Aerostar vs. Taiji Ishimori vs. El Hijo Del Fantasma

Lucha rules and the winner gets a future X-Division Title shot. Now that’s all I ask. Ishimori and Fantasma are sent to the floor in about thirty seconds, leaving Drago and Aerostar to trade covers. The other two replace them in a hurry and a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker gets two on Ishimori. A good looking middle rope moonsault to the floor drops Drago and we take a break.

Back with Drago kicking Fantasma in the mask and hitting an ankle scissors to take Fantasma down again. Ishimori comes back in with a Regal roll for two on Drago. All four get back in and Fantasma superkicks Drago down. Ishimori drops Fantasma as well and all four are down for a bit. Drago is sent outside for a dive from Ishimori, followed by a dive each from Fantasma and Aerostar. Back in and Aerostar powerbombs Ishimori into the corner for two but the Thrill of the Kill gives Fantasma the pin on Aerostar for the pin at 16:43.

Rating: C+. This didn’t have the energy or the pace as last week’s six man but thank goodness they did something about giving us a new #1 contender. You can’t have these guys out there doing all kinds of crazy stuff and popping the crowd and not move them up, at least a little bit. Good match here, as you probably expected.

Eddie Edwards goes into the meeting and demands that Callihan not be fired. Management tells him to do what he has to do away from the Impact Zone.

From House of Hardcore in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Moose vs. Kongo Kong

Joined in progress with Moose hitting a dropkick but getting thrown to the floor. Kong follows him out and whips Moose into the barricade as Josh talks about Callihan and Edwards over and over. Kong’s waistlock doesn’t get him very far so he sends Moose shoulder first into the post. Moose switches to a more simplistic offense by shouldering him down but Jimmy Jacobs comes in with a chair for the DQ at 6:08.

Rating: D. Leave it to Kong to pull the good match streak to a grinding halt. I still don’t care for these matches from outside promotions but at least they have something here where it’s continuing a storyline with people we know. Unfortunately one of those people is Kong and I still have no clue why he’s getting so much time, unless he works for dirt cheap.

KM wants Fallah Bahh to become the best man that he can and we get shots of them screaming into the camera.

Montage of KM training Bahh to make him lose weight while eating various bad food. Bahh passes out.

From Pro Wrestling Noah and if what I can find is correct, this is from June 4, 2017.

Brian Cage vs. Takashi Sugiura

Joined in progress with Cage hitting a delayed vertical suplex, followed by a standing moonsault for two. Josh: “If the Avengers ever needed a new member, and they do after Infinity War, they should get Brian Cage.” That’s getting rather close to a spoiler. Cage hits the apron suplex for two more but Sugiura knees him down and hits some running knees in the corner.

A superplex attempt is broken up but Sugiura snaps off a top rope hurricanrana to put both guys down. There’s a buckle bomb to drop Sugiura and an F5 gets two. A German suplex and running knee give Sugiura the same but Cage blasts him with the Tornado Claw for two more. The Drill Claw is good for the pin on Sugiura at 7:49.

Rating: C. They really couldn’t find another match from within the last ten months and had to go this far back? The World Tour idea is fine but come up with something a little more recent. The match was watchable, though telling me who Sugiura was would have been nice, albeit completely beyond Josh’s capabilities. As someone who doesn’t watch Noah, I have no idea if that was a big, middle of the road or meaningless win for Cage, because I don’t know if Sugiura is an all time great, a midcarder, or a jobber. I’m sure I could find it, but Josh and Impact need to be telling us these things. Why that’s so much to ask, I’m not sure.

From Destination X 2009, Suicide wins the X-Division Title.

Allie is looking in a mirror and has flashbacks to last week. She finds a doll with a note pinned to it and opens it up. While we don’t see what it says, Allie looks a little disturbing when she looks in the mirror, almost like something is trying to take control of her.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Eli Drake vs. Pentagon Jr.

Pentagon is defending and Steiner isn’t here with Drake. They trade catchphrases to start and Drake sends him into the corner to stand on his head. Back to back Sling Blades give Pentagon two as Aries is watching in the back, banana in hand. A powerslam cuts Pentagon off as we’re told that next week, House of Hardcore will present Edwards vs. Callihan in a street fight. At least there’s a storyline reason for going to another promotion this time.

We hit the chinlock for a bit before Pentagon headscissors Drake out to the floor. A superkick to the ribs knocks Drake out of the air and the Codebreaker out of the corner gets two. The Gravy Train doesn’t work and Drake misses a top rope Lionsault, allowing Pentagon to hit the Pentagon Driver for the pin at 7:09.

Rating: D+. Uh, where’s the rest of this match? Pentagon defends against a guy who was World Champion about three months ago and it’s barely hyped up and seven minutes long with a clean finish? We didn’t deserve a little more than that for a match like this? Anyway at least the briefcases are already done instead of having them hanging over our heads like the Money in the Bank briefcases so score one for Impact.

Overall Rating: C+. This show was on a roll in the first hour and then rolled off a cliff in the second with some bad matches and lame ideas that didn’t go anywhere. They’re doing a better job of setting up the other promotions’ matches as they seem to have a point now, at least some of the time. The show was watchable but they need to put it together in a better order to really make things work. That and get a louder bell. Seriously I had to rewind four matches tonight to hear where they started. Get something louder.

Results

Andrew Everett/DJZ b. LAX – Victory roll to Ortiz

Grado b. Rohit Raju – Cannonball

El Hijo Del Fantasma b. Aerostar, Taiji Ishimori and Drago – Thrill of the Kill to Aerostar

Moose b. Kongo Kong via DQ when Jimmy Jacobs interfered

Brian Cage b. Takashi Sugiura – Drill Claw

Pentagon Jr. b. Eli Drake – Pentagon Driver

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

When a D- is too generous.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/kbs-review-reviewing-review-backlash-2018/

IMG Credit: Ring of Honor Wrestling

Ring of Honor
Date: May 9, 2018
Location: Stage AE, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re on the road to Best in the World and I’m really not sure what that means at the moment. The show is in June but since Ring of Honor’s schedule is so all over the place, we might be getting a wide variety of stuff to set things up. Hopefully the show is at least good, which has been the case more often than not as of late. Let’s get to it.

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

Beer City Bruiser/Brian Milonas vs. Coast to Coast

The big guys are sent to the floor to start and Coast to Coast tries some stereo dives. Only Bruiser is taken down though as Milonas catches LSG but Ali is there with a dropkick to take them down. Things settle down with Bruiser knocking Coast to Coast to the floor right some forearms, only to miss the cannonball off the apron for a (very big) crash.

Back from a break with Ali in more trouble and Milonas hitting his falling splash. Another splash misses though and it’s off to LSG for some fast kicks. A 450 gets two on Milonas but Bruiser is back in with a Downward Spiral. Ali hits the same thing on Bruiser but Closing Time is broken up. Last Call connects instead with Ali diving in to make a save. Bruiser is sent outside and Coast to Coast hits Coast to Coast for the pin at 10:24.

Rating: C-. While the match wasn’t much, the ending was an absolute sigh of relief. This match needed to go to Coast to Coast as they’re starting to gain some momentum. The other team, as you may have noticed, is fat. That’s the extent of their characters and really, I could go for….oh just about anything else. Coast to Coast isn’t great but they’re better than those two and I’m glad ROH went with the right move here.

Jay Lethal is lost without gold and is ready to do whatever it takes to change that.

The Young Bucks are ready for one more match with the Briscoes in their Tag Team Title match next week.

Will Ferrara vs. Jonathan Gresham

Rhett Titus is on commentary and SOMEONE SHOOT ME NOW! Feeling out process to start and that’s a really bad idea from Ferrara’s perspective. Ferrara actually manages to take over with a wristlock as Titus keeps calling himself the Big Dog. Gresham can’t get out of the wristlock until a headscissors gets us to a standoff. Ferrara drops him again and we take a break.

Back with Ferrara working on the arm until Gresham uppercuts Ferrara’s arm in a nice counter. A running kick to the arm has Ferrara in more trouble but the Octopus Hold is broken up in short order. Ferrara takes him down with a clothesline and slaps on a cobra clutch Crossface of all things. Gresham makes the rope so it’s time for the slugout, which goes against the entire match they’ve been having so far. A German suplex gets two on Ferrara but la majistral into a bridging cradle ends Ferrara at 8:35.

Rating: C. Anything to get Titus off commentary. He and Ferrara are WAY too good at being the most annoying people in the promotion without having anything to back it up so they’re on the right path in one area at least. Gresham isn’t much more than he’s presented as and there’s nothing wrong with playing that role.

Post match the Dawgs beat on Gresham until the Motor City Machine Guns make the save.

Cody and Marty Scurll can’t agree on who should become the World Champion at Best in the World. Bullet Club is fine though.

So Cal Uncensored wants their belts back.

Shane Taylor is here to hurt people again. He doesn’t like having people like his opponent here tonight because that money could go in Shane’s pocket. That more money is Nova’s problem though.

Nova actually gets promo time, promising to scorch Taylor.

Shane Taylor vs. Ryan Nova

Kicks, two chokeslams and a Fire Thunder Driver are enough for the match to be stopped at 38 seconds.

War of the Worlds rundown.

Dalton Castle/The Boys vs. The Kingdom

Taylor is still at ringside and the Kingdom pays him for something. During the entrances, Castle and the Boys are ready for some chaos. TK O’Ryan hides from Dalton to start as Shane is sitting at ringside and guarding the Six Man titles. A shoulder puts O’Ryan down and there’s the first suplex to send him flying. Marseglia comes in and has to fight out of an early Julie Newmar attempt.

Instead Castle settles for another suplex and it’s off to the Boys with #1 climbing on #2’s shoulders to kick Marseglia in the face. #2 comes off the top with a missile dropkick for two but Marseglia takes him down by the leg. Taven comes in to face Castle chest to chest with Dalton sticking his out rather hard. A running kick to the chest in the corner has Taven in trouble and we take a break.

Back with Taven tripping Castle so Marseglia can take him down and going for the hand. Everything breaks down and the Boys dropkick Taven down. #1 gets triple stomped down as this just keeps going. A Saito suplex gets two on #1 and Taven adds a spinebuster. Cue Christopher Daniels to go after the titles but Shane shoves him down because money talks.

The Boys switch places (which works despite them having different color hair) in the melee, allowing #2 to kick O’Ryan in the head and bring in Castle. Everything breaks down and the Boys are tossed over the top rope multiple times each to take the Kingdom out over and over. Taven uses the distraction to hit Castle in the bad hand with a title, leaving #2 to take the Climax for the pin at 15:32.

Rating: D+. This was much longer than anything else, especially as a way to set up Taven vs. Castle at the major show later in the week. At least the side story with So Cal Uncensored and Shane wasn’t treated as a big deal that got a ton of time, but they’ve done worse things before. Not a terrible match but it was longer than it needed to be.

Post match the beatdown continues with Taven Pillmanizing Castle’s arm.

Overall Rating: C-. I wasn’t feeling this show as it was mainly stuff for future episodes or the upcoming week of big house shows, most of which aren’t exactly thrilling stuff. The main event really sucked the life out of the show though as it just went on too long and wasn’t all that good in the first place. Then again, Taven and the Kingdom aren’t interesting and that might have had a big part of the problem.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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: May 9, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Percy Watson, Mauro Ranallo

We’re in that odd period of NXT as we’re too far away from the next Takeover to really start building there but too far from the previous Takeover to deal with fallout. NXT is capable of pulling off something in the meantime though and that should be more than enough to bridge the gap. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s Ricochet to get things going. Everywhere he’s gone in his career, he’s tried to have people talking about him. Over Wrestlemania weekend, his goal was to leave people talking. You can call it confidence or cockiness but it’s who he is. Now the only thing on his mind is the NXT Championship but here’s Velveteen Dream to interrupt. Dream says no no no and wants to know who gave Ricochet the authority to come out here and ask for title shots. He needs Ricochet to take a step back and asks about the One and Only nickname.

Dream questions if Ricochet makes things look good because Ricochet is looking at the one experience. Ricochet can jump around all he wants but remember he’ll land in the back of the line behind the Dream. Ricochet says Dream is a lot, but he’s not Ricochet so enjoy the spotlight while you can. That’s fine with Dream, because anything Ricochet can do, Dream can do better. Ricochet: “Prove it.” Dream teases throwing a punch but drops to the mat instead, leaving after Ricochet winks at him. I could go for this feud, but I’m not sure where Dream goes if he loses another big match.

Raul Mendoza vs. EC3

Mendoza grabs a headlock to start, followed by a missile dropkick. EC3 is right back with a reverse bulldog driver (I’m not sure how much that would hurt) and sends him face first into a buckle. A TKO is good for the pin (with two hands on the chest for the cover) at 2:44.

Post match EC3 says he doesn’t care about losing at Takeover because adversity makes a man. The only thing you’ll see out of him going forward is victory after victory. Then this place will be NX3.

Last week Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch told Pete Dunne that they don’t like him but they’ll have his back because they don’t like Undisputed Era either. Dunne leaves without saying anything. That’s about what I expected.

Dakota Kai vs. Vanessa Bourne

Kai hits a running dropkick but misses a running version in the corner. Bourne is right back with a kick to the ribs and a swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker for two. We hit the double arm crank for a bit before Kai is back up with more kicks. Now the running kick in the corner rocks Bourne, followed by a running sunset flip into a Backstabber (cool) for the pin on Bourne at 2:36.

Post match Shayna Baszler comes out and Kai is terrified. Shayna drops the title and chokes Bourne off as Kai leaves in fear (with Baszler staring her down) instead of making a save. When Kai stands up for herself, many months from now, the pop is going to be crazy.

Back from a break with Kai being unsure what just happened. Baszler comes in and tells her to do something about it. Kai still can’t move so Shayna laughs and leaves. Kai hears more laughter and Nikki Cross is hanging from piece of metal and laughing at her too. Now that’s kind of interesting.

Heavy Machinery vs. War Raiders

Rowe and Dozovic start things off and it breaks down into a four way forearm slugout in no time. Knight gets sent outside and Dozovic gets kneed in the ribs. He’s still able to suplex Hanson down so it’s off to Knight vs. Rowe. Hanson is right back in with a suicide dive to Dozovic, leaving Knight to take Fallout for the pin at 2:52. That’s all this needed to be.

We look back at TM61 cheating to defeat the Street Profits.

The Profits are training because this is serious.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Kassius Ohno

Still no music for Ciampa. Ohno takes it to the floor early on and sends Ciampa into the barricade. One heck of a right hand sends Ciampa back into the ring but he snaps Ohno’s throat across the top rope. A running knee to the head rocks Ohno again and a kick to the side of the head puts him down as Ciampa asks if Ohno is Gargano’s big brother. Ohno blocks a chop and hits a bicycle kick. It’s time to go simple as Ohno stands on Ciampa’s head and then drops an exposed knee onto Ciampa’s damaged eye.

A shot to the face knocks something out of Ciampa’s mouth and puts on a cravate choke into something like a Bubba Bomb (with a cravate instead of a full nelson) for two. Ciampa is right back and pulls at Ohno’s eye, setting up a running knee to the back of the head for a near fall of his own (I thought that was it). A clothesline sets up a neckbreaker into a faceplant to put Ohno away at 9:32. Mauro is LIVID that Ciampa won.

Rating: C+. I can appreciate the idea of Ciampa as a violent guy who wants to injure people but sweet goodness he needs to switch those last two big moves up. A neckbreaker faceplant is a move that anyone could use and doesn’t look nearly as good as the running knee. It doesn’t fit the violent nature that Ciampa had been going for all match and didn’t feel like the end of the match. The rest was the right call with Ohno out for blood to avenge his friend and Ciampa not caring because he wanted to hurt someone. Just fix that finish.

Post match Ciampa hits Ohno in the back of the head with his knee brace and chokes him with it. Ciampa shouts that he broke Johnny’s spirit and broke Candace’s heart so the Gargano fairy tale is over.

Overall Rating: B. What more could you ask for? They covered about six stories in less than an hour and didn’t even touch the Undisputed Era or Aleister Black. As I’ve said before, if there’s one thing NXT knows how to do, it’s make everything feel like the most important thing in the world. This show flies by and that’s far more than you get anywhere else. Another very good show here that makes me want to see what they have in store.

Results

EC3 b. Raul Mendoza – TKO

Dakota Kai b. Vanessa Bourne – Sunset Backstabber

War Raiders b. Heavy Machinery – Fallout to Knight

Tommaso Ciampa b. Kassius Ohno – Neckbreaker into a faceplant

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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