IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 3, 2004
Location: America West Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

It’s a big night here with Chris Benoit defending the World Title against Shawn Michaels. HHH is still lurking around though because he doesn’t know how to do anything else. Other than that we have the continuing adventures of Eugene, who has turned out to be quite the charming fellow, especially with William Regal as his handler. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at Benoit vs. Michaels, billed as the Showdown in the Desert. I’ve heard of worse ideas.

Opening sequence.

JR welcomes us to Memphis.

Evolution vs. Tajiri/Shelton Benjamin/Edge

Flair is the odd man out here. HHH and Shelton start things off but Randy tags himself in before anything can start. Orton catches a kick to the ribs but is smart enough to not spin the leg around for the Dragon Whip. A clothesline drops Orton and it’s Tajiri coming in, only to be taken into the Evolution corner. As he comes in, the fans remind HHH that he tapped out. Edge, now with a more stylish black cast, gets in as well and it’s a rather nice looking staredown.

HHH eventually gets the better of it and brings Orton in for some choking in the corner. Evolution keeps taking turns on Edge with Batista slamming him down and HHH stomping away in the corner. The bad hand goes into the steps and HHH slugs away, followed by the facebuster for two. Edge scores with a spinwheel kick and it’s off to Tajiri for some slightly better kicks. A tornado DDT gets two on HHH until Batista breaks up the handspring with a shot to the back.

We come back from a break with Tajiri still in trouble, including HHH elbowing him to the floor. Batista chokes a bit and HHH adds an elbow to the chest as the dominance continues. Lawler: “Is it true that if you turn an Oriental upside down, they become disoriented?” Orton even gets in some pounding of his own and grabs a long chinlock. Back up and Tajiri kicks the head out of Orton, allowing the hot tag off to Edge. Everything breaks down and Edge hits Orton with a top rope clothesline. Batista breaks up the spear attempt and HHH clotheslines Benjamin. Tajiri mists Batista though and the spear is enough to put Orton away.

Rating: B-. Good old fashioned six man tag (which we need a lot more of) here and that’s exactly what this story needed. Evolution vs. a rotating cast of faces is a perfect way to book the show as you can do all kinds of combinations. The win should give Edge the inside track to an Intercontinental Title shot and there’s nothing wrong with that. Good booking and fun action to start the show.

Jonathan Coachman and Garrison Cade are insulting the women of Phoenix (and promising two good looking midwest women, who better not be Moolah and Mae Young) when Vince McMahon comes in to say he’s here for the big main event. That’s a nice cameo and Vince put Benoit over very strong.

Smackdown ReBound.

Last night at a Smackdown show, Eddie Guerrero brought his family into the ring when “something” happened, possibly involving JBL. I don’t see this going well.

HHH rants to Bischoff about being in the World Title match. Batista wants Tajiri and Johnny Nitro tries to calm things down. HHH: “Take it easy Johnny Oversell.” For next week: Batista vs. Tajiri, Orton vs. Edge for the Intercontinental Title and HHH vs. Benjamin.

Hurricane vs. Rob Conway

They fight over a neckbreaker to start with Conway getting the better of it and hammering away. It’s off to a modified cravate to keep Hurricane in trouble but he pops up for a missed Shining Wizard. Conway is right back up with a hanging swinging neckbreaker for the clean pin.

Rating: D. Not enough time to mean anything here but at least they’re doing something to set up next week’s match. That’s been the norm as of late and that makes for some fun television: set up things for next week and keep giving the fans a reason to come back. Why is that so hard to grasp?

Post match Conway promises a special beating for Eugene.

Video on Kane’s renewed evil, including forcing a kiss on Lita last week. You know, in case you haven’t seen enough from Kane in recent months.

Kane vs. Steven Richards

Chokeslam in about thirty seconds.

It’s time for the Highlight Reel. Before the guest comes out, Jericho talks about tonight’s World Title match. What are his thoughts? It’s been far too long since he’s had a World Title match of his own so he wants the first shot at the winner (making sure to point out that it’s someone other than HHH challenging for a change in a nice touch).

As for the show though, his guest is Matt Hardy, who believes in karma and is not afraid of pain. Jericho asks him about Kane and Lita but Matt gets right to the point: he wants Lita in the ring right now because he needs to ask her something. Lita shows up on the screen and says Matt has to listen to her. In what sounds like a forced statement, she says she never loved him and has found someone else. She never wants to see him again and needs him to stay away from her.

Lita finally snaps and says she can’t do this before screaming that she’s in the basement, revealing that Kane has her hostage. Matt runs out and Jericho says that’s kind of an abrupt end to the show. Cue Christian, Trish Stratus (all in black and…..well dang) and Tyson Tomko to chat a bit before coming in and laying Jericho out, including a low blow from Trish.

During the break, Matt went to save Lita but Kane was gone. Hugging ensues. Again: logical stuff there. There was no reason for Matt to wait until the break was over if it was that important, so just say it happened in real time and show it later.

Gail Kim vs. Victoria

Non-title and Molly, now with long, curly blonde hair, is with Gail. Before the match, Gail says no one feels sorry for Lita. Gail jumps her to start but gets half gorilla pressed up with Victoria dropping her part of the way through. The dancing moonsault gets two with Molly making the save and earning herself a stern lecture.

Back up and Gail clotheslines her into a chinlock, followed by a dragon sleeper. That works so well that Gail does the same sequence of moves again, this time causing Victoria to fight up and scream a bit. Three straight shot to the face have Gail knocked down (ignore Gail falling before the contact on at least one of them) but she’s right back with the Black Widow….and actually gets the tap.

Rating: D. Pretty boring match here but Victoria does need a new challenger. I can’t say fresh because we’ve seen every combination of these women for the better part of ever but at least we’re getting somewhere different with these people. Gail isn’t exactly polished at this point and hopefully we get to Trish instead of her instead.

William Regal is ready to train Eugene in what he calls a torture session. This might be his way to get out of this once and for all.

Vince is alone in a sky box to watch the main event.

It’s time for the training session with Eugene, who is very excited by an armdrag because Ricky Steamboat did them. Regal does a bunch of moves but Eugene does them all (set to what would become his music) and then taunts him with toys and a HHH water bottle. Regal switches to chain wrestling (as Ride of Valkyries starts up)….and is almost immediately taken down into a Regal Stretch with Eugene making him tap.

That’s EXACTLY how this character should work as he’s a goon in over his head everywhere but the ring, where he’s an idiot savant. That’s a good character and something that plays to both WWE’s creativity (which can exist) and Eugene’s in-ring skills. Everyone wins and I’m looking forward to the match next week.

Preview for next week. Again: give them a reason to tune in because they want to see matches instead of asking them to tune in and find out that it’s a good show. It also helps when you have the show planned that far in advance.

Before the main event, Bischoff makes Christian vs. Jericho in a cage for next week.

Raw World Title: Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Benoit

Shawn is challenging and they have a lot of time, as they should. An aggressive Benoit goes straight at Shawn in the corner but the referee makes a bit of a forced break. They do it again and now it’s time to start slugging away for a few moments. A headlock doesn’t keep Benoit down long as he’s right back with a backdrop and a clothesline to put Shawn on the floor. The announcers talk about Shawn being born here, with JR pointing out that not many people are going to notice, or likely care.

Shawn gets in a neckbreaker, followed by the flying forearm into the nipup. Benoit can’t get the Crossface in either of two attempts so Shawn hits him in the head again. Back from a very abrupt break with Shawn holding an abdominal stretch, allowing Lawler to plug next week’s matches again. One heck of a whip into the corner just wakes Benoit up as he rattles off some rollups for near falls.

Shawn atomic drops him down again, which Lawler thinks has the fans cheering because Shawn is from Phoenix. The top rope elbow connects but Sweet Chin Music is countered into the rolling German suplexes. Benoit hits four in a row but misses the Swan Dive to put them both down. Shawn goes up again, only to get caught with chops and some very angry stomps to put him in trouble.

Benoit loads up a suplex but gets suplexed out to the floor instead. The moonsault to the floor takes Benoit down again and Michaels’ tights coming down far lower than they need to be. He’s fine enough to whip Benoit knees first into the steps and head first into the post to bust him open as we take another break. Back again with Benoit fighting out of a sleeper and getting two off a bridging German suplex.

Shawn grabs the Walls of all things but Benoit makes a rope as we keep going (not a bad thing). The Crossface goes on and Shawn is in trouble until he gets his foot on the rope. With that not working, Benoit tries the Sharpshooter but gets kicked into the referee. Of course Sweet Chin Music connects a few seconds later but there’s no one to count. Cue HHH (erg) for a Pedigree to Shawn (Benoit didn’t see it) to give Benoit the retaining pin.

Rating: B+. Dang it they had me believing that HHH might actually stay out of the main event scene for a few weeks. This is either leading to HHH vs. Shawn (again) or Shawn wanting ONE MORE TITLE MATCH (again) because that’s the only way the World Title scene seems to be able to go for Benoit. HHH and Shawn need to just stay far apart for a long time but that’s not going to happen anytime soon, because they need to take over the show again and again.

HHH laughs to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. What more can you ask for? The very good Eugene sequence, two very good to great matches and setting things up for later on. There’s very little that they’re not doing anything at the moment and it’s almost hard to believe that this is Raw. I’m not used to having a show where I can’t make fun of that much but they’re managing to do it as of late.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: October 1, 2018
Location: Key Arena, Seattle, Washington
Commentators: Corey Graves, Michael Cole, Renee Young

It’s another night about the old guys as we have the go home show for Super Show-Down. Tonight, Shawn Michaels is scheduled to appear to make the final push towards Undertaker vs. Triple H on Saturday and you know full well he’s not going to be the only one here. Other than that we also have the issues between Dean Ambrose and the rest of the Shield, which could go several ways. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Dean Ambrose to open things up. Ambrose talks about being champion on his own and with the Shield, but the interesting thing is that Seth Rollins replaced him in short order. Maybe he doesn’t need to be part of the Shield anymore. Dean cuts off the questions about his loyalty and talks about how he could turn on the team anytime. We see a clip of last week with Dean looking back at Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre and Braun Strowman but then posing with the Shield.

Ambrose doesn’t want to hear about the questions anymore because the Shield is a brotherhood instead of a brand and they’ll always ride into battle together. Except for all those times they’ve fought. Cue Baron Corbin to say let’s judge Ambrose by his actions. Tonight, he has three choices: face Seth Rollins for the Intercontinental Title, face Roman Reigns for the Universal Title, or face Braun Strowman. Ambrose wants to face Corbin instead so Corbin makes the choice for Dean.

Dean Ambrose vs. Braun Strowman

Strowman runs him over to start and basks in the fans’….mixed reactions. The neck crank goes on until Strowman hits a running splash in the corner, followed by another neck crank. Strowman chokes on the ropes as this is complete dominance so far. A guillotine choke slows Strowman down though and Dean goes for the knee in the same battle plan that everyone has.

Back from a break with Ambrose hammering away at the face and slipping out of a running powerslam. A running dropkick has Strowman down on one knee but he pops up and runs Dean over again. Dirty Deeds connects for a delayed two and Strowman bails to the floor where he gets sent into the steps. Back in and Strowman hits a quick powerslam but can’t cover, allowing Dean to roll out to the floor. Ambrose gets thrown back in for another powerslam but here’s Roman Reigns to Superman Punch Strowman for the DQ at 13:55, despite Strowman not exactly cheating.

Rating: C. This wasn’t a bad match but they did a good job of setting things up for later. Reigns treated Ambrose like someone who needed to be saved and that’s not the kind of thing that he’s going to take lightly. That’s the kind of development that you need in a story like this and they’re doing it well so far.

Everyone else comes out for the staredown so Corbin makes Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins for later but for now, Roman Reigns gets to face Dolph Ziggler.

Post break, Rollins consoles Ambrose but Dean says he could have been Intercontinental Champion had he made the right decision.

Roman Reigns vs. Dolph Ziggler

Reigns says let’s make it a title match and the referee holds the title up, only to have Corbin come out to say that neither this nor Rollins vs. McIntyre will be for the title. Ziggler goes right after him to start and scores with a dropkick before slapping on a chinlock. Reigns gets sent outside and the running DDT plants him on the floor for good measure. Back in and the Fameasser gets two as we take a break.

We come back with Reigns fighting out of a chinlock but getting caught in a sleeper instead. That’s broken up as well and Reigns starts back with the clotheslines. The Superman Punch is countered into a rollup for two so Ziggler goes with the Zig Zag for the same near fall. Ziggler’s superkick is blocked with a Superman Punch for two, followed by the spear for the pin at 12:55.

Rating: B-. They were hitting the bigger stuff here but the lack of the title being on the line took away some of the fun. Of course they weren’t going to be changing the title here or anything like that but some near falls for the title could be worth seeing. It really kind of is impressive how much more fun Ziggler is when he’s not facing the same guy for four months at a time.

Ronda Rousey vs. Ruby Riott

Non-title. The Bellas and the Riott Squad are here as I try to figure out why the Bellas are friends with Rousey. Before the match, the Squad promises to give Ronda her first loss tonight. Rousey wastes no time in flipping Riott over, meaning it’s time for a breather on the floor. Another trip to the floor allows Riott to kick her in the ribs on the way back in and Rousey’s arm gets sent into the post for two.

Ruby fights up and pulls Rousey’s hair to bend her neck around the top rope. That’s rather unpleasant so Riott chokes away on the middle rope instead. Riott sticks with the hair theme by slamming Rousey down by the head and talking some trash. The Riott Kick is countered into a suplex and the over the shoulder powerbomb gets two. Rousey’s spinning Samoan drop sets up the armbar to make Riott tap at 6:52.

Rating: C. Much like the previous two matches, there wasn’t exactly a lot of drama about the finish as Rousey isn’t about to lose her first match here. Riott continues to look more polished in the ring than most, and that’s a good sign for her future. Also, Brie was involved in a match and didn’t seem to main anymore so things are looking up a bit.

Video on Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte.

Bobby Roode vs. Konnor

Egads get this over with already. An early Glorious DDT attempt is countered and Konnor runs him over. A jumping elbow gets two and we hit the chinlock for a bit. That’s broken up in short order and Roode hits a running clothesline. There’s the middle rope Blockbuster but a Viktor distraction lets Konnor hit the Dominator for the pin at 4:19.

Rating: D-. They have no idea what they want to do with this feud do they? This feud has actually been going on for five weeks now and I really don’t think they realize it. Am I supposed to want to see them have a third tag match out of all this? That’s the best they can do for the time they have?

It’s time for a Moment of Bliss, where she talks about Trish Stratus being her hero growing up. They’re facing each other at Evolution, but Bliss remembers the first time they met. When Bliss was a kid, she asked Trish for her autograph but Trish said it would be $50 because you can’t buy Jimmy Choo shoes for free. Trish ripped up the autograph book and left. These things are great.

B Team vs. Revival

Joined in progress with Dawson tagging himself in to work on Axel’s arm. The armbar goes on with Wilder coming in to crank on it even more. Axel finally sends him face first into the buckle and it’s off to Dallas to clean house. A spinebuster cuts Dawson off but a Rocket Launcher hits knees, allowing Dallas to roll Wilder up for the pin at 3:41.

Rating: D. So let me make sure I’ve got this straight: the Revival put everyone over for weeks so they could put over the B TEAM over them in a match that doesn’t even go four minutes? What in the world are they thinking for with this nonsense in the tag division at the moment? Another moment that gives me a headache, which is likely only to get worse.

Post match the AOP comes in to destroy the B Team. So they had to win the match….so they could mean a tiny bit more when they got beaten up after the match? Is that where we are here?

Ambrose is still banged up (it was just a pair of powerslams) when Reigns comes up to check on him. Dean isn’t happy, because he could have been Universal Champion right now if he had tried.

Corbin praises AOP and Rockstar Spud. The height difference is kind of amazing.

It’s Susan G. Komen month so here’s a video about how cancer is in fact bad.

Strowman and McIntyre are ready to get rid of the Shield and Strowman accuses McIntyre of being the weak link.

Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins

Non-title. Drew sends him into the corner to start and shoves Seth’s face. You don’t do that to Rollins, who takes Drew outside for a suicide dive. Back in and McIntyre kicks him in the ribs and cranks away at an armbar with a hand to the face. Rollins gets sent hard into the corner and we take a break.

Back with Rollins getting two of his own off the Blockbuster and hitting a spring forearm to the back of the head for the same. The reverse Alabama Slam is countered into a victory roll and the Falcon Arrow gives Rollins two more. Super White Noise is countered into the buckle bomb (which is very impressive given McIntyre’s size) but here’s Ziggler for a distraction. The Claymore finishes Rollins at 11:15.

Rating: B-. Good match, bad finish aside. They’re definitely playing up the idea that the Shield is in trouble but I’m starting to get worried about the Ziggler as the weak link. If this leads to McIntyre flattening him then so be it, but it really better not lead to Ziggler getting a face push out of the whole thing.

Post match everyone comes in and it’s a big brawl with Shield being left laying. Strowman and company hit the Shield pose.

Video on AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe.

Kevin Owens comes up to Elias in the bank so he can eat some of Elias’ lettuce. They don’t have the right kind of nuts though and the attendant gets doused with water instead.

Here are Elias and Owens for a song. Elias asks who wants to walk with him and Owens points at himself. Owens talks about the two of them getting along so well and their friendship makes sense. John Cena and Bobby Lashley teaming together doesn’t make much sense though, just like Seattle having a basketball team.

That’s a rather sensitive point for the fans, who go nuts on Owens as he asks about where Cena has been lately. Elias says that would be at Wrestlemania, when Cena ruined Elias’ first Wrestlemania moment. So Elias didn’t watch Greatest Royal Rumble either. The lights start to come up so Elias threatens to have the light guy fired. More Seattle insults ensue and Owens promises to win tonight.

Speaking of tonight, here’s Lio Rush to talk about where things are going tonight. Rush talks about Cena being a legend and tonight, Owens is going to get what’s coming to him. This was an excellent way of making Owens and Elias look like really annoying people and the match needed such a boost. Imagine that: letting wrestlers talk for more than a few seconds still works.

Bobby Lashley vs. Kevin Owens

One hard shove puts Owens on the floor to start and Lashley wrestles him down for good measure. Owens’ headlock works a bit better and he starts shouting at Rush to fill in time. That just earns Owens a neckbreaker and some face first trips into a few buckles. A powerslam sets up a fireman’s carry but Owens elbows his way to freedom. Lashley goes shoulder first into the post as we take a break.

Back with Owens sending him into the steps and dropping the backsplash for two. A top wristlock keeps the arm in trouble and Lashley on the ground, which is the best choice for someone like him. Lashley fights up (well duh) and clotheslines Owens down. The running shoulders in the corner looks to set up the delayed suplex but the arm gives out again. Instead it’s a spinebuster but Elias goes after Rush, allowing Owens to grab a rollup for the pin at 10:18.

Rating: D+. I’ll give them points for trying to do something with the Cena is a bad partner bit but does anyone believe that it won’t be Cena making his latest big return and winning in the international show? It’s not the most interesting match but it’s fine for a house show. The problem is this is presented as a bit bigger than a house show, and that’s not making the match come off very well.

Post match Rush gets knocked out of the air and Lashley gets powerbombed.

Bayley vs. Alicia Fox

This is your weekly Mixed Match Challenge preview. Fox goes straight at her to start but gets punched down for her efforts. A clothesline sets up the very early chinlock on Bayley but she’s right back up with the middle rope elbow to the jaw. Fox pulls her down by the hair though and we hit the chinlock. Bayley shrugs that off as well and rolls out of a sunset flip into a basement dropkick. Jinder Mahal goes after Bayley so Finn Balor lays him out. The Bayley to Belly finishes Fox at 3:36.

Rating: D+. Now that’s how you should do something like this! It’s so annoying to have these previews for a low level show eat up ten minutes so get them in and out in the span of about five minutes. The wrestling was exactly what you would have expected from these two because they’ve done it what feels like two dozen times now.

Here’s Shawn Michaels for the big closing talk. Shawn says the people are making him feel good to come home again and now he’s thinking about how Super Show-Down’s match is going to be the last time ever. What emotion should he be feeling? It might even be joy because it is time for the final showdown. As cheap as he is, he bought a ticket to come to Australia to see it in person as an innocent bystander.

That was the case until a few weeks ago, when Undertaker made it clear that Shawn had to make a choice. Shawn has the utmost respect for Undertaker, though he’ll pick HHH every single time. For some reason that upset the Undertaker (mainly because HHH almost never beats Undertaker and Shawn should be smarter than that) so now he’s got Kane in his corner. Well if Kane tries anything, it’ll mean some Sweet Chin Music. Cue Kane to appear behind Shawn and drop him with a single right hand….so there goes the gong.

Undertaker appears next to Kane and Shawn looks up at him, only to be picked up for the Tombstone. That gives us the talked about moment of the night: Shawn Michaels’ bald head, which you had to know was coming but my goodness it’s jarring. HHH comes in for the save but gets beaten down as well. Double chokeslams leave Shawn and HHH laying, followed by a Tombstone to HHH. Undertaker and Kane pose on the stage to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. The wrestling was good enough here but there are two stories on this show and they’re not the most thrilling. All I saw at the end of the show was four old guys who can only do a few things to each other anymore. Other than that you have Shield vs. Strowman and company, which isn’t something I’m going to get excited about. The rest of the show ranges from not great to pretty terrible. That’s the best we can do around here at the moment and that’s not going to make me care more than a potentially good football game on Monday night.

Results

Braun Strowman b. Dean Ambrose via DQ when Roman Reigns interfered

Roman Reigns b. Dolph Ziggler – Spear

Ronda Rousey b. Ruby Riott – Armbar

Konnor b. Bobby Roode – Dominator

B Team b. Revival – Small package to Wilder

Drew McIntyre b. Seth Rollins – Claymore

Kevin Owens b. Bobby Lashley – Rollup

Bayley b. Alicia Fox – Bayley to Belly

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 26, 2004
Location: Landon Arena, Topeka, Kansas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

They don’t have to go far to beat Smackdown this week. We’re still a week away from the big Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Benoit title match so you can probably bet on a lot of hype for that one tonight. Other than that Edge and Benoit are the new Tag Team Champions and Evolution won’t be happy. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Shawn challenging Benoit last week and Benoit and Edge winning the titles.

Opening sequence.

Lita/Victoria vs. Gail Kim/Molly Holly

Lita is especially smiley this week while Molly’s hair is now longer, brown and curly. Victoria and Gail start things off and it’s a very early dancing moonsault (again with the camera facing Victoria’s front) for two. Molly comes in for a quickly broken cravate so it’s off to Gail to keep beating on Victoria. An elbow knocks Lita off the apron and Gail grabs a Black Widow to take Victoria down. That’s broken up pretty quickly and the hot tag brings in Lita to clean house. A spinning belly to back suplex gets two on Gail and Molly loses the wig. Molly sends Victoria into the barricade, leaving Lita to DDT Gail for the pin.

Rating: D+. Not terrible as they take care of the issue from Backlash. It’s not like the women’s division means anything at the moment (and it hasn’t for years) so having the women trade wins don’t exactly help or hurt anything. They kept it short here and nothing was terribly botched so that’s about all you can ask for.

Post match Molly beats up Lita some more but here’s Kane of all people to interrupt. Just like last week Lita isn’t smart enough to roll under the bottom rope and get out so Kane strokes her cheek and smells her neck. She finally runs away and, after a break, runs into Matt Hardy in the back. Matt says he’s facing Kane tonight and he’ll take care of her. Kane shows up and beats Matt down as Lita wisely runs for a change.

Here’s Kansas’ own Coach for a chat. He brags about not choking like all of the Kansas college teams but here’s Tajiri to interrupt. Tajiri calls him a liar and wants a rematch tonight. That’s a no so Coach puts in an order for Chinese food. That means a kick to the head…and here’s HHH to interrupt. HHH kicks him low and asks why Shawn is getting the title shot. It was Shawn who tapped out at Backlash and that’s why HHH should be getting the shot instead. With Tajiri getting up, HHH says he’s just like Shawn because he doesn’t know when to get up. That means some green mist and the blind HHH freaks out as Tajiri runs.

Post break HHH goes into Bischoff’s office and yells at a plant (as in a potted plant) about wanting Tajiri tonight. Eric leaves and HHH yells at the empty room. Because he can’t see.

Rob Conway vs. Rhyno

Eugene and William Regal show up at commentary. Eugene: “French Canadians! Pat Patterson first Intercontinental Champion Rio de Janeiro 1979!” JR to Lawler: “You didn’t even know that.” The USA chants begin and Eugene joins in before heading down next to the Titantron for some cartwheels. Rhyno gets two off a belly to belly but gets thrown over the top.

Conway chokes on the ropes as Eugene has stolen some popcorn and come back to commentary. Regal: “No don’t put that in your ear!” Conway gets two off a kick to the ribs and the referee is nearly jumping as he counts the two. Eugene is over in the tech area as Conway whips Rhyno into the corner and gets two off a clothesline. Some pyro goes off thanks to Eugene pushing buttons, allowing Rhyno to hit a Gore (the only significant offense of the match) for the pin.

Rating: D. The wrestling was just a backdrop for the Eugene stuff but it feels like innocent, harmless fun. That’s the way they should be treating him and Regal as the funny straight man is the perfect foil. This was a lot of fun and I’m starting to remember why I was a big fan of the guy back in the day.

Post break La Resistance wants to fight Eugene tonight but Regal says that can’t happen. Johnny Nitro makes Eugene vs. Conway in two weeks.

Edge and Benoit are cut off by Shawn, who reminds him of their match next week. Shawn leaves and Edge wants Benoit to stay focused on tonight.

Here are Christian, Trish Stratus and Tyson Tomko for a chat before a match. Christian talks about Jericho being a problem and needing a problem solver.

Christian vs. Grandmaster Sexay

Sexay gets jumped to start as JR goes back to the 1800s for insults about Trish. A flapjack lets Sexay dance a bit and a middle rope dropkick gets two. The reverse DDT is broken up and a cactus crossbody puts them both on the floor. Back in and Tomko offers a distraction to break up the Hip Hop Drop. The Unprettier gives Christian the easy pin.

Post match Tomko kicks Sexay in the face but Jericho’s music hits. Tomko is sent into the aisle but Jericho comes in through the crowd and gets Trish in the Walls for all of two seconds.

HHH vs. Tajiri

HHH, with a somewhat green face, is still wiping his eyes and hammers away to start. Tajiri gets choked on the mat as the fans remind HHH that he tapped out. Some kicks knock HHH down and the handspring elbow gets two as the fans are already into this one. That’s enough to send HHH outside for a breather but Tajiri smacks him in the face and sends him head first into the steps. HHH gets back in at nine and the Buzzsaw kick is blocked.

Tajiri kicks away even more but walks into the spinebuster as Lawler makes more and more jokes about Tajiri’s accent. A hard whip sends Tajiri into the corner but he’s right back with a spinwheel kick. The Octopus Hold is countered by a HHH hiptoss and the Tarantula doesn’t go on full. Instead Tajiri goes with a missile dropkick that knocks HHH into the referee. The mist misses though and the Pedigree finally finishes Tajiri.

Rating: C+. This was much better than I was expecting with Tajiri working hard and HHH actually giving him a lot. You don’t see a midcarder going move for move like this with a top star very often and it makes for a very refreshing match. HHH didn’t lose anything here and Tajiri looked better than he has in a long time. Now why can’t we get something like this a little more often?

We recap the Lita/Kane/Matt Hardy stuff.

Kane vs. Matt Hardy

Matt, who always meets his deadlines, can barely walk to the ring. Kane wastes no time in beating him down and chokes on the ropes. A whip sends Matt chest first into the buckle and there’s the chokeslam. Kane chokeslams him again but Lita runs in to save Matt from the Tombstone. Lita lets him kiss her and Kane walks out. Angle instead of a match.

Victoria tried to get people to vote.

Lawler is in the ring to promote the Divas Magazine, because he’s the only one you could get to talk about the thing. We see some shots on the Titantron and here’s Stacy Keibler to help things out. What is she doing here you ask? Meeting Harley Race, sitting in the front row, of course. Therefore cue Randy Orton as JR panics. Orton says he’s the only real legend around here and has already accomplished more than Race has in his whole career. Race shaking his head is worth a chuckle and Orton goes out to spit on him. That draws Race over the barricade but Shelton Benjamin (hey he’s still here) to jump Orton for the save.

Smackdown Rebound. That show needs no more attention.

Batista and Flair want their titles back. Apparently Batista hasn’t been able to sleep since losing the titles and that will NEVER happen again. He screams everything he says here but does earn himself a WOO.

Tag Team Titles: Ric Flair/Batista vs. Edge/Chris Benoit

Benoit and Edge are defending and Edge still has a cast on his hand. Flair and Benoit hit the mat for an early standoff with Flair slicking the hair back. With the technical stuff not interesting him, Benoit chops in the corner and hits a backdrop. Flair goes for the leg (well duh) and it’s already off to Batista. Edge comes in as well and stomps the big man down in the corner until the running clothesline takes his head off.

Flair comes back in and gets taken down into a weird looking half crab (Edge is turned halfway around instead of facing backwards), followed by a Figure Four as tends to be required in Flair matches. Of course Flair knows the counter so it’s back to Benoit for more chops and a Flair Flop (earning some appreciative applause). Benoit chops him so much that it’s a second Flop but Edge walks into an atomic drop.

A knee to the back sends Edge hard into the corner and Batista sends the bad hand into the steps as we take a break. Back with Edge sending Batista face first into the buckle and the hot tag bringing in Benoit. They’re not wasting time with this one. Everything breaks down and Flair is clotheslined to the floor, leaving Batista to take the rolling German suplexes. The Swan Dive sets up the Crossface but Flair is back in for the save.

We settle back into the standard operating procedure here with Flair tossing Benoit into the corner and Batista adds a suplex. The half crab keeps Benoit in trouble and Flair gets two off a chop. You don’t chop with Benoit so Flair takes him down by the legs to bring Batista back in. An enziguri gets Benoit out of trouble and the hot tag brings in Edge. Everything breaks down again and Batista spinebusts Benoit. That allows Flair to load up the Figure Four, only to eat the spear to retain the titles.

Rating: B. Hot tag match here with a clean finish, which is a lot more than I was expecting. They’re rolling with the idea of longer wrestling matches at the moment and that makes for a very fun ending like this one. Edge and Benoit’s roll continues and Edge’s feud with Kane is forgotten more every week, thank goodness.

Post match HHH comes in to beat the Canadians down but here’s Shawn for the save with a chair. He hits Benoit by mistake (dun dun dun) and that’s not cool with Edge. They calm down but Benoit is up with the Sharpshooter to Shawn to end the show. Good way to set up next week’s title match.

Overall Rating: B-. There’s some stuff on here that isn’t as entertaining as the rest but it’s such an easy show to watch and they’re making it a lot of fun every single week. Above all else they’re not just focusing on one or two things and leaving the rest out to dry. Build up the entire show and the good parts will look even better as a result. If you happen to get something fun like Eugene as a bonus, it’s even better. Another good show this week.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 24, 2018
Location: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

Somehow Super Show-Down is next week and that means we need to firm up the card a little bit. They’ve done a great job of setting up HHH vs. Undertaker for the Australia show, but there are still a lot of other things that need to be put together. Tonight’s show could go in a variety of directions so let’s get to it.

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

There’s a new Then, Now and Forever video, which is a rather nice improvement.

Baron Corbin opens the limo for birthday girl Stephanie McMahon and HHH. He even starts singing Happy Birthday but Stephanie gives him the look. HHH (wisely) leaves and Stephanie gets some birthday balls for giving himself a Universal Title shot last week. Stephanie makes a six man tag for tonight with Baron needing to find some partners.

Here’s the Shield to open things up. Dean says they’re the three workhorses in WWE. They may have lost some battles but they’ve never lost a war. Reigns (cue the booing) says you can read off their resumes but that would take all day. All you have to do is look at them hold up their titles because these are the keys to the kingdom. That’s why Brock Lesnar is back and it’s why Corbin did what he did last week.

As for tonight, the world’s largest substitute teacher has to find some partners so get out here right now. Cue Corbin to sound rather cocky because here are Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre with Strowman saying the Shield is about to crack. Strowman promises a 4-2 fight at “WWE Super Show” because Ziggler remembers Dean being WWE Champion on his own two years ago.

Drew and Ziggler talk about Dean being taken for granted because he’s the only one without a title. Dean is always the one sacrificing himself and making the other two champions. They make it very clear: switch sides and become Intercontinental Champion. Reigns cuts them off and wants to fight but Corbin runs out to keep anything from happening, promising to take Shield out with his still unnamed partners. The Dean stuff is interesting, but it seems too early to break up the Shield again.

Finn Balor vs. Jinder Mahal

Preview for next week’s Mixed Match Challenge match so Bayley and Alicia Fox are here as well. Mahal doesn’t even get an entrance here in case you needed more proof of his collapse. An early shot to the ribs takes Balor down and we hit the headlock on the mat. The fans are behind Balor, mainly because the other option is to be behind Mahal. Balor knocks him to the floor and hits the big flip dive as we take a break.

Back with Mahal in control and putting on an abdominal stretch, only to have it broken up in a hurry. Balor makes the comeback but runs into a superkick. That goes absolutely nowhere as Balor hits a Sling Blade but Singh trips him up. Bayley trips Mahal just as fast and the fight is on, including a Bayley to Belly to Sunil Singh. That’s enough of a distraction for Balor to roll Mahal up for the pin at 9:55.

Rating: D+. This was as good as Balor vs. Mahal was going to be when the match was there to set up what will likely be a match focused on the women. As usual, Raw is designed to be a big commercial for whatever else they can find, which is a big reason why the show is harder to sit through as of late. The Mixed Match Challenge match will be fine, but I could go for something a little more interesting than a ten minute commercial.

Post match Mahal and Fox berate Sunil before sitting down and shouting SHANTI.

Video on Ronda Rousey’s Open Challenge from last week and the Riott Squad answering until the Bella Twins made the save.

Riott Squad vs. Natalya/Bella Twins

Liv and Nikki start things off with Nikki running her over, because Nikki is a star or something. It’s off to Brie for the YES Kicks….and one of them hits Liv in the face, seemingly knocking her cold. Brie almost has to drag her to the corner for the tag off to Logan, because Brie is somehow managing to screw up LIFTING HER LEG INTO THE SAME PLACE OVER AND OVER.

Liv is finally good enough to come back in for a triple suplex to send the Squad out to the floor as we take a break. Back with Morgan gone to the trainer’s room and Logan catapulting Brie into a forearm from Riott. A double hair takedown takes Brie and Logan down, allowing the hot tag to Natalya. House is cleaned but Riott tags herself in to break up the Sharpshooter, setting up the Riott Kick to finish Natalya at 10:27.

Rating: D-. So aside from Brie kicking Liv in the face and knocking her silly (egads man), this was a bad match with no real flow and an ending only designed to set up the six woman tag at Super Show-Down. I’m sure glad we spent months building the Squad up so they can be used to get the oh so precious Nikki set up for her match with Rousey, which the world is just dying to see.

The roster is on the stage as HHH and Stephanie are in the ring for the Connor’s Cure segment. Some kids are brought out and presented with title belts and a big check is presented to Connor’s Cure from a Hyundai charity.

Ziggler comes up to Ambrose in the back to ask where the rest of the Shield was when Dean was out for nine months. Dean just needs to watch what happens tonight.

Chad Gable vs. Konnor

Gable thinks he should just ask what Bobby Roode would do, and that means BE GLORIOUS. Konnor promises carnage and pounds away to start as we’re in the chinlock thirty seconds after the bell. Gable’s armbar over the ropes and a dropkick to the knee have Konnor in trouble, followed by a German suplex. The moonsault misses but Gable lands on his feet. Konnor runs him over though and grabs a Dominator for the clean pin. OH COME ON ALREADY! We’ve sat through FOUR matches between these teams and now Gable loses to Konnor? To set up what better be Roode’s heel turn? This is the best they have???

Stephanie and HHH are leaving when HHH says if Undertaker is worried about HHH wearing a suit, he’s already lost the fight. For Undertaker, the end is near.

Tag Team Titles: Dolph Ziggler/Drew McIntyre vs. Revival

Revival is challenging and get a jobber entrance. Ziggler shoves Dawson into the corner to start so Dawson takes over off a wristlock. Wilder comes in but gets to deal with McIntyre, who takes him back into the corner. It’s already back to Ziggler as the fast start continues. Ziggler gets caught in the corner and Wilder adds a slingshot clothesline for two. The running DDT is countered into the Rings of Saturn but Ziggler rolls over into a cradle.

Back up and a crossbody puts both guys on the floor in a big crash. Ziggler avoids a charge to send Wilder into the steps and it’s McIntyre getting two off a suplex as we take a break. We come back with Dawson getting the hot tag and hitting a leg lariat of all things to drop Ziggler. A tiger driver gets two and a PowerPlex (sweet) is good for the same with McIntyre making the save.

The Fameasser is countered into an electric chair for a Doomsday Device (dang they’re opening the playbook this week) as the fans are way into this. Ziggler slips out of something and brings McIntyre back in for the power. A powerslam is broken up with a dropkick to the back and Wilder falls on top for two. It’s quickly back to Ziggler though and the Claymore into the Zig Zag retains the titles at 12:38.

Rating: B-. Revival was trying to get noticed out here and while that’s not likely to happen, I can certainly appreciate the effort. Ziggler and McIntyre retaining wasn’t much of a secret but at least they had some fun out there and gave us a good match. It’s so weird seeing Revival as the de facto faces but they pulled the role off quite well.

Here’s Elias in front of what looks like a talk show set. Since we’re in Denver, Elias is going to pass this off to Kevin Owens for the Kevin Owens Show. Owens is excited to team with Elias to face John Cena and Elias at Super Show-Down but there’s someone else Owens wants to address. That would be his guest this week: Lio Rush, who Owens says can just walk to the ring instead of flipping and diving. Owens pulls out a booster seat, which Rush laughs off by bringing out Lashley.

Bobby Lashley vs. Elias

Well that wasn’t much of a talk show. Lashley throws him down to start and then does it again for good measure. Elias manages a headlock to slow things down so Lashley runs him over. A crossbody and side slam give Lashley two so Elias gets smart by taking out the knee. Said leg is wrapped around the post as Rush continues the hype. A leglock keeps Lashley down and Elias is getting frustrated when it only gets two. Lashley is back up with a clothesline to the floor but Elias takes the knee out again and we take a break.

Back with Elias working on a half crab until Lashley sends him outside. A Downward Spiral gets two back inside and Lashley’s knee is fine enough for the delayed suplex. The spear puts them both on the floor as Owens chases Rush, eventually kneeing Lashley in the face for the DQ at 13:12.

Rating: D+. Not great here, and I have no idea why I’m supposed to be worried about Cena and Lashley having trouble with Elias and Owens. Rush and Lashley are a good pairing and there’s some potential for comedy with Cena and Rush. That being said, there’s potential for all of these guys and none of it has gone anywhere in a long time. Maybe Owens can quit again to get some of the spark back.

Post match Owens goes after Rush but Lashley makes a save.

Rollins comes up to McIntyre in the back and asks why McIntyre isn’t getting his own singles titles. I wonder that every day. Rollins leaves and Ziggler comes up, with McIntyre telling him not to worry about it.

Kevin Hart is in a movie about being a teacher so Alicia Fox teaches him a few things. This is really not funny.

Nia Jax vs. Alicia Fox

Ember Moon, Alexa Bliss and Mickie James are all here. Fox is scared to start so Jax makes it better by throwing her to the floor. Back in and a quick neckbreaker gives Fox two and it’s off to the chinlock. That lasts as long as you would expect so Fox throws some forearms, only to charge into the Samoan drop for the pin at 2:56. The finish was almost all of Jax’s offense.

Ziggler asks Dean what’s going on and brings up Seth stabbing Dean in the back before.

Video on HHH vs. Undertaker.

Shawn Michaels will be here next week.

Shield vs. Baron Corbin/???/???

The partners are of course the AOP, because who else was it going to be? Braun, Dolph and Drew come out to watch, all with their own chairs. Ambrose and Corbin start things off with Dean actually taking it to the mat so Rollins can come in for a double suplex. Corbin hands it off to Akam so the Authors can run everyone over. Reigns gets to face Rezar, who talks a lot of trash and then gets hit in the face.

A few more shots put Rezar down but he pops back up to Reigns’ shock. The Shield clears the ring so here come Strowman and company with the chairs for a distraction. The Authors beat them down and Corbin gets two off a chokeslam as we take a break. Back with Reigns dropping Corbin in a Samoan style so Rollins can come back in to speed things up. The Blockbuster gets two on Akam but Drake Maverick offers a distraction so Corbin can low bridge Rollins to the floor.

We hit the neck crank from Rezar and an elbow runs him over for good measure. Corbin comes in and runs Reigns off the apron in a smart move but the delay lets Rollins hit a Sling Blade. Everything breaks down and Reigns takes a Last Chapter on the floor. Deep Six gets two on Rollins but he’s able to get out of the side slam/double stomp combination.

The hot tag brings in Ambrose to clean house until Akam crotches him on top. Ambrose is fine enough for a jumping neckbreaker on Corbin but Reigns has to break up the Last Chapter. The Stomp hits Corbin and Rollins hits a suicide dive, leaving Dean to hit Dirty Deeds on Corbin. Ambrose dives onto Akam, leaving Reigns to spear Corbin for the pin at 19:14.

Rating: C+. Pretty standard six man tag here though nothing too bad. Seeing Shield all together is almost always fun and that was the case here, though I could have gone for the Authors having a more dominant venture into the main event scene. At least Corbin took the fall, which was the only way this should have ended.

Post match Ambrose looks at Strowman and company before heading back inside for the fist pose to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. Raw is the land of feast or famine. If you’re in the main event, you have a story going, motivations and everything else you could need. Outside of that though, you’re lucky to get TV time and if you’re Gable, you’re wondering where it all went wrong. This show has gone falling off a cliff in recent weeks with the build either being focused on everything else or nothing at all and that’s a hard trick to pull off. It’s certainly not the worst it’s ever been, but there needs to be a switch back to a better path in a hurry before things get even worse.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 19, 2004
Location: Saddledome, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

We’re done with Backlash and that means it’s time to start the long road to Bad Blood in June as May is Smackdown’s turn. Chris Benoit retained the World Title in another classic triple threat match while Randy Orton survived against Cactus Jack in the match that should elevate him to the next level. Let’s get to it.

Here’s Backlash if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Chris Jericho vs. Christian

Now that’s how you open things up. Lilian Garcia adds another town to Jericho’s list of homes, billing him from Winnipoga, Manitoba, Canada. Christian has Trish Stratus with him and….egads man. That’s one of the better looks she’s ever had, which is quite a list to top. They fight over a lockup to start but shove each other away for a staredown. Christian slaps him in the face so Jericho punches him in his, which seems to be a little more effective.

A middle rope dropkick gives Jericho two and it’s off to the pinfall reversal sequence. You don’t do that to Jericho, who tries for the Walls. Trish comes in for the save and that means another spank. As Lawler calls that sexual harassment, Jericho dives onto the two of them as we take a break. Back with Jericho going face first into the steps, allowing Trish to slap him in the face.

The Chick Kick knocks Jericho into a chinlock until the standard comeback gets him out. A running crotch attack to the back looks to set up the Lionsault but Jericho settles for the Flashback instead. Christian’s reverse DDT (not the Unprettier JR) gets two and he heads up top.

That takes a little too long though and a butterfly superplex gives Jericho two of his own. Christian is right back with a super reverse DDT but the Texas Cloverleaf doesn’t work. Trish gets in a cheap shot but her slap hits Christian, setting up the enziguri. Now it’s Trish getting in to break up the count so Jericho loads up the Walls, only to have a big bald tattooed man come in and kick Jericho in the face to give Christian the pin.

Rating: B. Nice match here and the addition of a monster can help advance the feud. Jericho won last night so it makes sense to have Christian get his win back here. It’s a good idea to bring in some more people to keep the feud going, which is something that modern wrestling just doesn’t understand a lot of the time.

Post break, Christian introduces Trish to her new problem solver: Tyson Tomko. Chris Benoit’s music cuts off the end of the segment, which really shouldn’t be the case for a pre-tape.

Here’s Benoit to celebrate retaining the title. Benoit talks about every wrestling fan and historian knowing about the Dungeon right here in Calgary. Eighteen years ago, Stu Hart springboarded his career into professional wrestling and that’s why he’s here today. Benoit wishes Stu was here so he could thank him and we pause for a STU chant. Ever since he left the Dungeon, Benoit has been told that he can’t win the big one and he’s proven them wrong.

Then he won the Royal Rumble and went on to become World Heavyweight Champion at Wrestlemania XX by making HHH tap out. Then he was told it was a fluke so last night he made Shawn Michaels tap too. Cue Shawn because this still isn’t over. The fans remind him that he screwed Bret before Shawn talks about how he’s always believed in Benoit. We see a clip of Shawn pinning him clean two months ago so he wants another title shot.

Benoit says let’s do it right now but here are Eric Bischoff and Johnny Nitro to cut them off. Calgary doesn’t deserve that match so let’s do it in two weeks instead. Therefore in two weeks in Phoenix (with Johnny pulling out a PDA to make sure of where the show is taking place), much to the fans’ annoyance. They shake hands and talk some trash. There’s your non-pay per view main event.

Women’s Title: Victoria vs. Molly Holly

Victoria is defending and Molly’s wig now has short hair. An early clothesline gives Molly two but she gets monkey flipped down. The apron clothesline drops Molly again as they’re certainly starting fast. Back in and the dancing moonsault gets two….and there goes the wig. A lot of her hair has grown back to the point where she looks like she just got a very short haircut and is in no way bald anymore. That’s too far for Molly, who chokes Victoria down and gets disqualified.

A white limousine arrives and it’s….Evolution, with Batista throwing his belt over his shoulder and hitting Flair in the head. HHH hears about Shawn getting the World Title shot in two weeks and says that’s his match.

Kane says there has been a problem of late. He’s shown compassion and it has made him weak. Tonight, he feasts on fear and suffering and someone will be sacrificed. This might be better if he hadn’t lost last night.

Bischoff and Nitro are scared about Kane when William Regal comes in. He’s already tired of being stressed over Eugene and isn’t a glorified babysitter. Bischoff is more worried about where Eugene is now but Regal says he hasn’t seen him since a game of hide and seek went awry earlier today (seriously). That’s not cool with Bischoff, who says Regal either take care of Eugene or Regal gets to face Kane tonight.

Here’s a cut up Randy Orton for a chat. Mick Foley promised to shut him up last night but that didn’t happen. Last night was the biggest win of his career and he wants to thank Foley for what he did. We get a quick RANDY chant before Orton talks about all the things that Foley did to him last night that the fans loved.

Everyone loved it when he was thrown into the pile of tacks but then it was the RKO onto the barbed wire bat that put Foley away. After Orton won though, he turned into something new. Last night he entered the ring as the Hardcore Legend and the Legend Killer (So he wants to kill himself?) but left as a living legend.

Cue Edge to interrupt and he’s tired of hearing Orton run his mouth for the last fourteen months. Edge doesn’t like Orton and wants him to spit on him just like Foley. That’s a big no, because Orton is tired and sore, but Edge isn’t worth it anyway. The fight is on but Batista and Flair come in to take Edge out.

Benoit makes the save but HHH comes in to beat him down as well. Evolution leaves them laying and poses on the stage but here are Bischoff and Nitro to make Edge/Benoit vs. Flair/Batista for the Tag Team Titles tonight. Orton looked like a star here and that’s exactly the point of last night’s match.

Garrison Cade vs. Tajiri

Coach introduces Cade and sits in on commentary. Cade takes him into the corner to start but gets kicked in the face. The handspring elbow is broken up with a boot to the back as Coach brags about Cade’s expensive cowboy boot. Tajiri’s back gets bent around Cade’s knee and Cade slowly walks around. The delay allows Tajiri to hit the handspring elbow this time around and a superkick gets two. A Lionsault misses though and Cade drops a top rope elbow for the pin.

Rating: D+. Cade wasn’t terrible here but he wasn’t exactly thrilling either. Giving him the clean pin over Tajiri at least suggests a short term push for him, though I don’t know how far he’s going to be able to go. At least they’re trying something new and as soon as they can come up with a better name for him, he might have a chance of going somewhere.

SmackDown Rebound looks at Big Show losing his job, followed by losing his mind and threatening to kill Torrie. Instead he chokeslammed Kurt Angle off a balcony and left him in a pool of blood.

Eugene is in the arena with a t-shirt gun so let’s cut to the announcers to talk about the Tag Team Title match. Regal comes out to collect him and takes a shirt shot between the legs. Of course the selling is hilarious and the EUGENE chant is a good sign.

Benoit and Edge fire each other up before the title match.

Val Venis/Lita vs. Gail Kim/Matt Hardy

Fallout from both Heat and Backlash. No match as Matt, who has 44 different action figures and doesn’t like wasting time making his bed, gets followed to the ring by Kane, who beats up both guys as his sacrifice. He goes after Lita but Matt dives on her and takes the beating instead. Lita cowers in the corner like a nitwit instead of, you know, RUNNING AWAY FROM KANE.

Tag Team Titles: Edge/Chris Benoit vs. Ric Flair/Batista

Flair and Batista are defending. Benoit and Flair take turns driving each other into the corner to start until some chops have Flair in the corner. Edge comes in for a backdrop and fires off his own chops in the corner. It’s off to Batista who gets dropkicked into the ropes but Edge can’t knock him down. Instead Benoit comes in and takes him down with a snap suplex, which annoys Batista so much that he takes Edge’s head off with a clothesline.

Flair comes back in and works on an armbar for a bit. Edge spinwheel kicks his way out of trouble and it’s back to Benoit for more chops. Another snap suplex sets up the Sharpshooter but Benoit has to let it go to suplex Batista. With Batista gone, the Crossface has Flair in trouble but HHH comes out for a distraction. Batista spinebusters Benoit and we take a break.

Back with Batista hammering away on Benoit and slapping on a bearhug. Flair distracts the referee and HHH manages to get inside and choke away. We hit the rear naked choke from Batista until a belly to back suplex drops Benoit. Flair comes in and takes a German suplex, allowing the double hot tags to Edge and Batista. Everything breaks down and Edge punches his way out of the Batista Bomb. The Swan Dive hits Batista but HHH pulls Benoit out. Cue Michaels to superkick HHH as Edge spears Batista for the pin and the titles. JR: “Stu Hart has gotta be smiling!” Like Stu would ever let a long match air in full on TV.

Rating: C+. The ending continues the story they have going here and Edge felt much more like his pre-injury self here than what we’ve been seeing for the last few weeks. Let him be all fired up and clean house, which is what he does better than anything else. Benoit being a double champion in his hometown is a nice idea and a great way to send the fans home happy. Not a bad match either.

Overall Rating: C. Nothing great here but a perfectly watchable show that advanced the stories forward and let us have a pretty fun night of wrestling. The problem with the main event scene would be that Shawn and HHH won’t leave Benoit alone but it’s not like there’s anyone else to fight him. Orton and Batista aren’t ready and Flair wouldn’t feel like a threat. That doesn’t leave many options, but it’s pretty clear who is up next. Anyway, nice show as they leave Canada with a fun evening. Oh and where was Shelton Benjamin? Not seen once all night and only mentioned in passing.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 17, 2018
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Renee Young, Corey Graves

It’s the night after the Cell and that means things are now heading towards a variety of shows because the days of building towards one event on Monday night is gone. In this case we’re coming up on Super Show-Down, Evolution and the next Saudi Arabia show. Oh and Survivor Series is down the line and we can get there eventually. Roman Reigns retained the Universal Title last night over Braun Strowman via a no contest when Brock Lesnar interfered. In the Cell. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Reigns to open things up but first, a video on last night’s Cell match. Reigns says last night was brutal but he’s still Universal Champion. He knew Lesnar would get a rematch and if he wants the title, come get it right now. Cue Strowman instead, to say that Lesnar saved the title last night. That’s the second time Lesnar has screwed him over and there won’t be a third time.

Strowman wants Lesnar before he gets to Reigns but here’s Baron Corbin to interrupt. He’s upset about what happened too and has gotten together with Stephanie McMahon to come up with a plan. At Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia, Reigns will defend against Strowman and Lesnar in a triple threat match. Strowman: “I think that sucks. I think you suck and I think you suck.”

That’s enough for Strowman but here’s Paul Heyman to take his place. He’s here to educate the fans and shows us the door that Lesnar kicked off of the Cell last night. You can boo Lesnar all you want but tonight it’s all about Brockonomics. The bigger star you are, the more money you’re worth in WWE and UFC.

There is nothing more powerful than the Universal Championship though and look at all the money WWE brought in when Lesnar was champion. Lesnar will get the title back and become the crown jewel of WWE. Heyman leaves but Corbin is still not done. Reigns is banged up so let’s have a Universal Title match tonight with Corbin himself getting the shot.

It was an acceptable opening segment, but we’re now hyping up a show in NOVEMBER because Super Show-Down and Evolution just aren’t enough. Super Show-Down is already overshadowing most of the show and now we need to start getting ready for another show a month later? It didn’t work during the build to the Cell and it isn’t likely to work again here, which is why WWE is going with it full steam ahead.

Dean Ambrose vs. Drew McIntyre

No seconds. Ambrose goes straight for the leg to start and wraps it around the post. The leg gets sent into the LED board (Remember when the side of the ring was a skirt and didn’t make noise? I miss those days.) but Drew runs him over on the floor. Back from a break with Dean in an armbar but hitting a right hand to the jaw. A clothesline takes Drew down and the knee is banged up again, only to have him kick Dean away.

Drew gets crotched on top and goes down into the Tree of Woe, only to sit up and choke superplex Ambrose down. Ambrose avoids a Claymore though and the Texas Cloverleaf has McIntyre in more trouble. A rope is grabbed so Dean knees him outside for a suicide dive. Dean goes up but misses the top rope standing elbow to the floor. He dives back in at nine, only to run right into the Claymore for the pin at 11:25.

Rating: C+. This was all it needed to be and there’s nothing wrong with that. Drew getting a clean pin over a former World Champion is a good sign and hopefully it leads to several more once this feud is over. Strowman is going to tie up the title picture for a long time as we wait around for the Saudi Arabia show, which will totally benefit Reigns’ time with the title.

Post break Dolph Ziggler congratulates Drew when Corbin comes in to say he’s winning the title tonight. Corbin also talks Ziggler into invoking his rematch clause tonight because Rollins might not be here, meaning it would be a forfeit to make Ziggler champion. My goodness Corbin isn’t working in this role.

We look back at Ronda Rousey retaining the title last night.

Natalya talks with the Bellas when Rousey comes in. They are SO proud of her and Rousey wants to issue an open challenge tonight. For some reason this requires some instructions. This “we’re all giggly sisters who totally love each other” is nauseating.

Chad Gable vs. Viktor

Gable wastes no time in taking him to the mat but Viktor cartwheels away (ok then) and chops Gable into the corner. A butterfly suplex gives Gable two but a Konnor distraction lets Viktor elbow him down. The chinlock doesn’t go anywhere as Gable is right back up with the armbar over the ropes. A crossbody puts Viktor on the floor for a cannonball, followed by a missile dropkick back inside. Rollins Chaos Theory gives Gable the pin at 4:14.

Rating: D+. Viktor was trying here but there’s only so much you can get in a four minute match with zero doubt to the ending. The Gable/Roode team is fine but this is going to set up Roode vs. Konnor, despite Ascension losing clean twice in a row already. There is no reason for the feud (Is this even a feud?) to continue and whatever steam Gable and Roode might have had is going away.

Post match, Konnor lays out Roode and Gable because THIS MUST CONTINUE.

Rollins arrives and is told about the title match. He doesn’t seem to mind.

Here’s Undertaker to respond to HHH about Super Show-Down. During his very well received entrance, Cole says many consider Undertaker the best of all time. Those people would be wrong. Undertaker talks about how no one can spin a web of lies like someone with a broken soul and no one has a soul as broken as HHH. The delusion will be HHH’s downfall because his new battlefield is the board room.

HHH can no longer decipher truth and can’t see his own demise. Undertaker doesn’t care what anyone thinks and only cares about what’s coming: HHH going six feet under again and Game over. HHH can have his delusion and his best friend Shawn Michaels, but Shawn is going to be at ringside. Therefore, Undertaker will bring Kane to even things up. Undertaker already took Michaels’ career and he’s going to do the same to HHH. As a bonus, he’s going to take HHH’s soul.

This didn’t sound like an Undertaker promo as it felt like someone cutting a promo while in Undertaker gear. It certainly wasn’t bad or anything, but Undertaker talking at a normal pace and speaking about board rooms was just a bit off. You can see the big tag match coming from here and…my goodness I don’t really care if it’s not at Wrestlemania.

Same Reigns vs. Strowman match from earlier.

Video on wrestlers going to the Dallas children’s hospital.

The kids come out with Bayley and Sasha Banks.

Bayley vs. Dana Brooke

Joined in progress with Bayley fighting out of an armbar but getting caught with a handspring elbow in the corner. Dana sends her hard into the corner for two and some handstand knees to the ribs get the same. Bayley snaps the throat across the top, slips out of the Samoan driver and hits the Bayley to Belly for the pin at 2:54 shown. Nothing to see here.

The AOP nearly kills a guy in the back.

2K19 ad.

AOP vs. Gregory James/Barrett Brown

I think you get the idea by now. The Death Valley Driver into the corner sets up the Super Collider for the pin at 1:04. The team is as much of a layup as you can get but they’re going to have to wait a few months to get into the title hunt, again because things are set up so far in advance these days.

Ziggler and Corbin are in the back when Rollins comes in to say he’s ready to go. That was in doubt after he appeared earlier?

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Rollins is defending and they’re both really banged up after falling off the Cell last night. Rollins sends him outside to start but Ziggler beats him back inside and knocks the champ into the barricade to send us to a break. Back with Rollins elbowing him in the face, followed by a Blockbuster to put them both down.

The Sling Blade is countered into a sleeper but the superkick is countered into the ripcord knee for two. Rollins gets crotched on top, only to have Ziggler get crotched as well. The superplex looks to set up the Falcon Arrow but Ziggler slips out into a rollup for two. He takes too long getting up though and the Stomp retains Rollins’ title at 9:38.

Rating: C+. Was there really a need to go from the Cell one night to ANOTHER rematch between these two the next night? You couldn’t just have them cut promos on each other and set up a match in….two weeks maybe? This was the shortened version of what these two have done for three months now and I really don’t care anymore as WWE continues to take away any impact the Cell could have.

Reigns says he’s not the underdog tonight.

Hispanic Heritage Month video on the fathers of wrestlers. And Roberto Clemente.

Here’s Rousey for her open challenge. Rousey congratulates Alexa Bliss who pushed her hard last night and showed Rousey how to fight like a champion. She wants to be like Bret Hart, Steve Austin and Ric Flair, so the open challenge is on. Cue Natalya…or at least her music as the Riott Squad pulls Natalya out onto the stage. Ruby is the one accepting the challenge but Rousey beats all three up without much effort until a spear cuts her down. The Bellas make the save because we need the six woman tag to set up Evolution.

We look at Corbin giving himself a title match by just giving himself a title match.

Corbin is warming up when Strowman comes up. He hopes Corbin wins the title because, and I quote, “You suck and I know I can kill you.”

Here’s Elias for a song. Elias is tired of being cut off every week but it’s all jealousy. Everyone who interrupts him knows that WWE stands for Walk With Elias and that gets on people’s nerves. Tonight he has Bobby Lashley, who has all the tools but he can’t win in the clutch. Kind of like the Dallas Cowboys. The song continues but here’s Lio Rush to cut him off. Rush is tired of hearing Elias play the same dish track every week. Elias: “Who’s kid is this?” Rush introduces himself so Elias says security can come out here and take Rush back to lost and found. That gets a chuckle from Rush, who is ready to see Lashley take Elias apart.

Bobby Lashley vs. Elias

Joined in progress with Rush on commentary, introducing himself as the Manager of the Hour. Lashley powers out of a chinlock and elbows Elias in the jaw before going up. That’s not the best idea as Elias knees him out of the air. Cue Kevin Owens to go after Rush, who does all of his flipping and diving to escape. Elias goes after him as well and the match is thrown out at 2:52.

Post match Lashley throws Rush at the other two and the villains bail. That’s a good usage of Rush, who can always work a match if necessary, which is a huge perk.

Alexa Bliss, Alicia Fox and Mickie James are ready to take care of Ember Moon tonight.

Ember Moon/??? vs. Alicia Fox/Mickie James

The mystery partner is….Nia Jax. Fox and James hide on the apron until Moon starts for the team. Moon cranks on the arm but gets sent into the corner so James can come in. That doesn’t work well either as Moon sends her outside for a suicide dive. Back in and Fox takes her down into a chinlock as they’re building towards the hot tag to Jax.

James adds her own chinlock before Fox gets two off a big boot. A belly to back suplex attempt doesn’t quite work though and it’s a diving tag to bring in Jax. Everything breaks down and the Eclipse drops James, leaving Fox to kick at Jax’s legs. That goes as well as you might expect with the Samoan drop finishing Fox a few seconds later at 5:55.

Rating: D. Totally standard formula tag match here and bringing Jax back is fine, though there’s not much for her to do at the moment. Rousey and the title are tied up in Bellaville, Jax has beaten Bliss multiple times and the Riott Squad wouldn’t exactly be thrilling. Maybe put her against Moon, but that’s not the most inspiring stuff either.

Corbin insists the referee call the title match down the line.

Cole and company talk about the Hurricane Florence victims and show us how to donate to the Red Cross.

Universal Title: Roman Reigns vs. Baron Corbin

Reigns is defending and is banged up after last night. Corbin goes right for the ribs to start and gets two off a rollup. They head outside with Reigns hitting the apron dropkick but getting clotheslined down as we take a break. Back with Corbin holding a chinlock, followed by a chokebreaker for two.

That’s enough non-chinlocking so we hit it again to keep Reigns in trouble. Reigns fights up for the corner clotheslines as the announcers are STUNNED that he can do this. Dude he had a 24 minute match last night where nearly ten minutes was spent laying down. Rollins and Ziggler had a 25 minute match and then FELL OFF THE CELL and wrestled for ten minutes tonight. Reigns isn’t that impressive.

The Samoan drop gives Reigns two and there’s the Superman Punch off the steps. Corbin has finally had it and throws a chair at Reigns and yeah I’m not falling for this. There’s the restart with No DQ. Back in and the Superman Punch gives Reigns two. Reigns goes for the chair but here’s Strowman to take Reigns down. Strowman misses a charge into the post but Corbin grabs Deep Six for two. Now it’s Ziggler, McIntyre, Rollins and Ambrose running in for another fight, including double suicide dives to put Ziggler and McIntyre down. The spear retains the title at 16:53.

Rating: D. Well duh. I can get behind the idea of a champion having to overcome the odds and still retain the title in an obvious finish but Corbin is one of the least threatening heels in years. When your big move is “I’LL CALL STEPHANIE!”, I’m not going to buy you winning the title. All the run-ins didn’t offer any help either and the match was just boring as we waited for the inevitable spear. Reigns can carry things, but he’s not a miracle worker yet.

Overall Rating: D+. This was a very lethargic show as the Cell continues to mean less and less every single year. Tonight, Rollins and Ziggler wrestled after falling off the Cell (which is apparently less devastating than about twelve minutes of wrestling inside of the thing, which is a debatable point at best) and Reigns was treated like a god (again) for wrestling to a no contest inside of the thing. No time to worry about that though, because we have three shows to build to at once. The Saudi Arabia show is going to dominate the news in short order and that’s not going to help all the problems that Raw already has.

Results

Drew McIntyre b. Dean Ambrose – Claymore

Chad Gable b. Viktor – Rolling Chaos Theory

Bayley b. Dana Brooke – Bayley to Belly

AOP b. Gregory James/Barrett Brown – Super Collider

Seth Rollins b. Dolph Ziggler – Stomp

Bobby Lashley vs. Elias went to a no contest when Kevin Owens interfered

Nia Jax/Ember Moon b. Mickie James/Alicia Fox – Samoan drop to Fox

Roman Reigns b. Baron Corbin – Spear

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 12, 2004
Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

It’s the go home show for Backlash and we’ve actually got a big time main event this week. Last time, we had a huge closing angle to set up an eight man tag main event with Evolution facing off with Mick Foley/Shelton Benjamin/Shawn Michaels/Chris Benoit. The question now is can they live up to the hype. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the eight man tag being set up, starting with HHH being counted out against Shelton.

A bandaged Shelton yells at Eric Bischoff (with Johnny Nitro in the background, somehow still with Barbie) for letting everything happen last week. Threats are made but Shelton’s partners come in to get him out before it gets bad. Foley takes Barbie back and violence is promised later.

Here’s Foley for the opening chat. Foley tells us to be very very quiet because he’s hunting Randys. Barbie is back where she belongs but tonight, he has to hand her over to someone, just not a nimrod like Johnny Nitro. Tonight he’s going to have to follow a few rules that won’t let him do what he wants to Orton. This is going to be his first match on Raw in four years and with his incredible partners behind him, he’s going to do some Mick Foley romping and stomping.

The problem is that on Sunday, he’s worried about getting obsessive when it comes to hurting Orton. That might not be the person that he wants to be. That’s a problem as Orton may be a jerk but he’s one of the best wrestlers in the world. Foley doesn’t want to extinguish one of wrestling’s brightest lights at Backlash…but he knows someone who would love to. That would be Cactus Jack, who Foley explains just in case you’ve forgotten. In short, Foley has a conscience but Jack just doesn’t care. Orton comes in and gets chased off just as fast.

This is one of the reasons Foley is my favorite wrestler of all time. Instead of playing multiple characters and rarely acknowledging the previous versions. Foley however is the real person who can turn into whatever he needed at the time. It’s such a different way of doing different characters and rather fascinating.

Kane vs. Grandmaster Sexay

Well there’s a surprise return. This would be Sexay’s first match on Raw since May 2001. Kane looks disgusted by his mere presence and shrugs off the early right hands. A missed elbow lets Sexay get two and an enziguri staggers Kane again. The big boot (which didn’t connect) puts Sexay down and it’s the side slam into the chokeslam for the pin. Not as much of a squash as you would have expected.

Trish Stratus is annoyed at having to face Chris Jericho on Sunday. Eugene comes up and recognizes the makeup lady but calls Trish s***. William Regal comes in for the save and Christian calms her down. He’ll do the work on Sunday and Trish can get the pin.

Tajiri vs. Five Star Ninja

Coach is here with the masked Ninja. Given the average size, generic movements and full body costume…it’s obviously Al Snow because Coach doesn’t have any other friends. Before the match, Coach says Tajiri wants to face him at Backlash, but that only happens if Tajiri can beat the Ninja. JR: “What’s the difference between a five star ninja and a two star ninja?” King: “Three stars.”

Feeling out process to start with Tajiri getting the better of a wristlock battle. The Ninja strikes away but gets kicked in the arms, followed by the handspring elbow. Tajiri goes for the mask but gets kicked in the back of the head. King: “Don’t tug on Superman’s cape and don’t ever try to unmask a ninja.” The referee gets poked in the eye and doesn’t see Coach break up the Tarantula with a cheap shot. That’s only good for two as JR makes fun of Coach’s screaming. Tajiri kicks him twice in a row for the fast pin.

Rating: D. I’m fine with them setting up something like this as it’s an actual story with a reason for the two to be fighting and a way to get to the match. That’s more than you get with a lot of the things around here so somehow, this is better than a lot of the current stories. Not bad, especially considering how low level this is.

Of course it’s Snow.

Ric Flair yells at Bischoff about Shelton and gets a match with him at Backlash. He opens the door and is immediately punched out by Shelton, who seems to become the only wrestler in history to actually watch the show live on a monitor. A beatdown ensues and Flair is left laying.

HHH talks about how the main event of Wrestlemania was great but now they all have something to prove. Benoit needs to prove that it wasn’t a fluke. Shawn needs to prove that he’s still the Showstopper. HHH will prove that he’s still the best in the world.

It’s time for the Highlight Reel with JR mentioning that this is the arena where Jericho debuted. Jericho can’t wait for Backlash because he’ll finally be getting the match he’s wanted since Wrestlemania. What a long wait it must have been. He rips on Trish some more, saying it’s Y2J vs. CLB vs. FDDBBTH and once he gets the W, their careers will DOA and they’ll be MIA, just like DDP, forced to sell DVDs of the OC from HBO on AOL and QVC at the DMV and all the while, Trish will wish she had a little Vitamin C baby.

Jericho knows Trish likes it rough, so he starts barking. That brings up the clip of Trish barking for Vince three years ago, complete with some added sound effects. You can imagine the name that Jericho calls her as a result and brings up last week’s loss in the battle royal. That brings him to Lita, his guest for the week. Lita comes out but Trish jumps her, drawing out Bischoff to make a match.

Lita vs. Trish Stratus

Joined in progress with Trish hammering away and Jericho still at ringside. That means Christian comes out to even things up as Trish gets two off a bicycle kick. The chinlock keeps Lita down for a long time until Lita fights up with a knee in the corner. Stratusfaction is countered into a belly to back suplex and some HORRIBLE right hands keep Trish in trouble. A Russian legsweep gets two and Trish misses a charge to send her outside. Lita suicide dives onto her but Christian whips her into the barricade for the DQ.

Rating: D. Just a mess of a match and Lita’s comeback wasn’t exactly strong. I know these two are considered the greatest women ever until the Women’s Revolution but they really leave a lot to be desired more often than not. To be fair though, compared to some of the other women of their era, they were leaps and bounds ahead and I get why they’re beloved.

Post match Jericho beats the heck out of Christian but takes too long going for the Walls on Trish, allowing Christian to beat him down. Trish slaps Jericho in the face, allowing Christian to hit back to back Unprettiers. The Chick Kick wraps it up.

La Resistance wants to show the United States the error of their ways and they’ve moved to Quebec to be closer to their mission. As Conway goes on a rant against America, Eugene comes in behind them and plays with the Quebec flag. Regal makes the save.

Here’s Johnny Nitro for a chat. Nitro isn’t happy with what Edge did last week and would like Edge out here right now. Cue Edge, with his hand still in a cast. Nitro gets to the point: if Edge uses the cast against Kane, he’s suspended. Edge doesn’t care and spears Nitro down.

Sylvan Grenier vs. Hurricane

Feeling out process to start with Hurricane scaring him down off the superhero pose. A cheap shot in the corner doesn’t work for Grenier but he drops Hurricane ribs first across the top rope. Grenier knees him in the ribs a few times and sends Hurricane into the corner to stay on the ribs. We hit the abdominal stretch as Lawler thinks JR should steal Hurricane’s mask and be the Lone Ranger. A gutbuster gets two….and here’s Eugene with a stuffed bunny for Conway. That’s a no so he tries Grenier instead, with the bunny being ripped in half. The distraction sets up the Eye of the Hurricane to end Grenier.

Rating: D-. While Trish vs. Lita wasn’t very good, this was just really dull and there’s no other way to put it. La Resistance as the evil French (Canadian) guys isn’t interesting and putting them with Eugene isn’t going to make that any better. It’s a case of characters not working and WWE chugging away with them anyway because they don’t know when to give up, which is never a good idea.

Shawn Michaels has been asked how he’s going to top the Wrestlemania triple threat. It’s easy: He’s Shawn Michaels and that’s what he does. Three men are going to try to top what they did, but only one is walking out World Heavyweight Champion. “Why? Because I’m Shawn Michaels.” is the most Shawn answer ever and also rather accurate.

Smackdown Rebound, looking at JBL becoming #1 contender because there’s nothing else going on around there.

Video on Mick Foley’s history of violence, including clips of the Japanese death matches. This is just a way to catch the newer fans up and that’s fine.

Orton is very scared as he realizes what he’s gotten himself into.

Backlash rundown.

Chris Benoit talks about Wrestlemania being the biggest night of his life. It wasn’t about luck because it was all the hard work paying off. He’s going to do it again at Backlash and luck will have nothing to do with it. These short promos have all been very good.

Evolution vs. Shawn Michaels/Chris Benoit/Shelton Benjamin/Mick Foley

Shawn and Flair get things started in a good idea, though there aren’t many bad combinations to be found here. Flair gets sent into the corner and Shawn gives us a strut and WOO. A slap to the face sets up the Flair Flop, which still gets a reaction because it’s a funny spot. Some chops set up the backdrop and it’s off to Foley for the running knee lift. A right hand knocks Flair into the falling tag to HHH….which doesn’t count for whatever reason. The announcers sound confused as well and I can’t blame them.

Anyway, Benoit comes in to fire off some chops to Flair, who crawls over to tag HHH. This one counts, despite the referee’s back being to them this time. I know he’s been around forever but come on Chioda. Benoit throws HHH from corner to corner, including a trip to the good corner for some shots to the head. The jumping knee gets HHH out of trouble but it’s way too early for the Pedigree. It’s not too early for the Sharpshooter though and everything breaks down (BIG pop for that). Evolution is cleared out and Shawn dives onto everyone but Orton.

Back from a break with Benoit in trouble and HHH coming in sans tag (it doesn’t really matter) to choke away. Some chops to Flair allow the first hot tag to Foley for a right hand to knock Orton off the apron. The running knee in the corner rocks Flair and Shelton springboards in with a clothesline. A low bridge sends Benjamin to the floor though and HHH whips him into the corner for bad measure.

Back in and Shelton fights out of the corner until a spinebuster plants him all over again. The abdominal stretch goes on (with Orton pulling from the apron) for a bit until Foley comes in for a save. That’s not enough for the save though as Flair hammers away to keep Benjamin in trouble. We haven’t seen much from Batista so he gets to stomp on Benjamin’s ribs until a Dragon Whip finally allows the hot tag to Michaels. Shawn cleans house and hits the flying forearm on Orton, only to nip up into Batista’s big clothesline.

Everything breaks down and Shawn drops the top rope elbow on Orton. Sweet Chin Music hits Flair but Shawn walks into an RKO. It takes a long time to cover though, allowing Benoit to make the save with a Swan Dive. Foley backdrops HHH to the floor to break up a Pedigree and grabs the Mandible Claw on Orton. Batista makes the save but Shawn hits Sweet Chin Music on Orton for the pin.

Rating: B+. Who knew that putting eight highly talented wrestlers, including some of the best ever, in a long match with some very good young guys and letting them all do something would result in an awesome match? The crowd ate this up and the fact that they had so many Backlash matches in one showcase was all the better. This was a blast and flew by with a great ending to make it even better. Check this out if you get the chance.

Benoit and Shawn stare each other down as HHH pulls himself up between them to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. As usual, this did what matters most for a go home show by making me want to see the pay per view. They built things up, even if the stories aren’t that great in the first place (Coach vs. Tajiri). The big matches look awesome though and the show has the potential to be outstanding, with this being the last big push that it might have needed. The main event is the only thing worth seeing, but the show did its job.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 10, 2018
Location: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Commentators: Renee Young, Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s the go home show for Hell in a Cell, though I’m not sure how much attention that is going to get since we’re about a month away from Super Show-Down and a month and a half away from Evolution. WWE doesn’t seem to mind about going that far into the future so Sunday might not get the most attention. Let’s get to it.

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

Here are Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre and Braun Strowman to open things up with the roster (the lower portions of it that is) around the ring. Dolph says we told you so because they beat the Shield down. We get a recap of Strowman vs. Reigns, which has morphed into the trio vs. the Shield. This led up to last week’s huge beatdown, with most of the roster getting together to wreck the Shield, with Seth Rollins nearly being thrown through a police van window.

Back in the arena, Strowman calls Ziggler and McIntyre his Dogs of War, which really doesn’t fir a guy wearing pink tights. Cue the Shield to beat down the guys at ringside with Dean Ambrose busting out some ax handles to make things easier. Strowman, Ziggler and McIntyre bail and Shield stands tall to wrap a pretty hot opening. Above all else: it was eleven minutes, not twenty.

Earlier today, the Riott Squad wrecked the Bellas’ locker room. That’s like desecrating a national monument.

The Shield is trying to keep up the fight but cops cut them off. Baron Corbin tells Shield to get out or forfeit their titles. Rollins, seemingly with a plan, says no problem and they leave.

Nikki Bella vs. Ruby Riott

Ruby headlocks her down to start as the announcers IMMEDIATELY start talking about how the Bellas are such legends and how the locker room reveres them. Maybe if the Total Bellas cameras are around. An STO gives Riott two but Nikki hits that lame spear. Ruby kicks the rope to send Nikki outside though and we take a break.

Back with Nikki hitting a spinebuster and some clotheslines, followed by the Disaster Kick (one of the few things that looks good) for two. Sarah Logan offers a distraction though and it’s a Downward Spiral to give Riott two of her own. Back up and the Rack Attack 2.0, with Brie intercepting Logan, is good for the pin on Riott at 9:13.

Rating: D+. Perfectly watchable match, which is about par for Nikki. That’s all well and good(ish), but you would think the twins were Moolah and Trish in their primes based on the commentary. It’s kind of hard to take that seriously when you see what the other women, if nothing else some of the bigger names in the Mae Young Classic, are doing.

Big Show is on the stage with some pediatric cancer survivors. Cool indeed.

More kids got wrestling personas. Stephanie handles their introductions because of course. Gripes about narration aside, there is nothing wrong with this whatsoever and it’s always going to bring at least a smile.

Show talks about how greater these kids are than wrestlers trying to win a match. Each one gets their own introduction.

We look back at last week’s Shawn vs. Undertaker segment. I really hope this doesn’t set up Shawn getting back in the ring.

Drake Maverick gives AOP (yes that seems to be their official name, likely because Vince had a random idea one night) a pep talk. I’m sure they’ll need it.

AOP vs. Ronnie Ace/Nathan Bradley

Ace tries his luck on Rezar, earning himself an early fall away slam. A powerslam puts Bradley onto Ace and it’s the Super Collider for the pin at 1:18.

Video on Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton in the Cell.

HHH arrives in a limo.

Here’s HHH for a chat. HHH talks about how the era was back and the upcoming Undertaker match was on. Undertaker dominated a poll among the fans and that didn’t bother him. It did however bother Undertaker last week when Shawn Michaels picked HHH. He watched it back and Undertaker hadn’t lost respect for HHH or Shawn, but for himself. Undertaker has lost a lot since those matches and now he’s just a reputation. Now it’s personal though and HHH is going to put him down. More great stuff here as they’re doing everything they can (and succeeding) to turn this into an epic showdown.

We recap Shield’s issues tonight.

Tag Team Titles: Dolph Ziggler/Drew McIntyre vs. B Team

The B Team is challenging. Ziggler and Dallas start things off with Bo hitting an early neckbreaker for two. Axel comes in and slugs away as we take a break. Back with McIntyre working on an armbar before stomping on Axel’s hand. A superkick into a reverse Alabama Slam gives McIntyre two but Axel catapults Ziggler into the corner. Everything breaks down and Ziggler rakes Dallas’ eyes, setting up the Zig Zag/Claymore combination to retain at 8:48.

Rating: D. The B Team are still comedy guys and there’s still no reason to believe that Ziggler and McIntyre shouldn’t slaughter them. They were fine for what they were as short form comedy goofs but they were designed to lose huge to a better team. There’s nothing wrong with that, but this match should have been what the title change was: near if not complete and utter dominance.

Post match Ambrose and Rollins run in to beat down Ziggler and McIntyre, who bail before McIntyre can get Stomped.

Video on the Undertaker vs. Mankind Cell match, with Foley being here tonight to commemorate the 20^th anniversary. I mean, it was two and a half months ago but points for the thought? Maybe?

Corbin yells at Ambrose and Rollins for coming back in but they insist that they’re individuals and not the Shield. They threaten to have Corbin arrested for filing a false police report last week with the local sheriff coming in to read him his rights. Corbin wants to talk in private and Dean says they won’t press charges. WWE really needs to have David Otunga explain how law works.

Kevin Owens vs. Tyler Breeze

Cole: “We thought Kevin Owens had quit.” Well he did quit, but what we’re curious about is why he’s back. No match as Owens wrecks Breeze before the bell and gives him the apron bomb.

Post destruction, Owens says Corbin immediately called him after he quit and begged Owens to come back. Owens agreed, under the condition that he suffers no consequences for his actions. Therefore Owens is back and blames Bobby Lashley injuring Sami Zayn for the whole thing. This is still his show and you can expect agony, anarchy and destruction. You can almost picture Lashley’s hand being raised from here.

Video on AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe, which is miles ahead of anything on Raw at the moment.

Bobby Roode/Chad Gable vs. Ascension

Rematch from last week where the new team won. Gable tags himself in to suplex Viktor a few times but Konnor kicks him in the face. The chinlock goes on early and it’s Konnor’s running splash setting up a Viktor jumping knee for two. Gable backdrops his way to freedom and hands it off to Roode to clean house. Roode loads up the GLORIOUS pose but Gable tags himself in again and hits Rolling Chaos Theory for the pin at 3:16.

Rating: D. They’re not exactly hiding what they’re going for here and that’s not the worst idea in the world. There’s a story there of having Gable turn heel because his partner isn’t doing enough, but WWE isn’t likely to think that way with a story like this. What we’re getting is long overdue though and finally getting it done is the right call. I mean, it should have happened months ago but at least it’s happening.

WWE has been nominated for People’s Choice Awards. Good for them.

Ziggler is annoyed at the Shield being back when Corbin comes in to announce McIntyre and Ziggler defending the titles against Rollins and Ambrose. It’s what Stephanie would want you see. Strowman is off to hunt the Big Dog.

Ronda Rousey/Natayla vs. Alexa Bliss/Mickie James

Alicia Fox is in Bliss and James’ corner. Natalya and Bliss start things off with Bliss being taken down off a headlock. The basement dropkick gives Natalya two and it’s off to Rousey for a nice reaction. Of course Mickie comes in as well, meaning Rousey gets to toss her down and bring Natalya back in.

The threat of a Sharpshooter sends Mickie bailing to the ropes and Alicia gets in a cheap shot from the floor. Bliss comes back in for an armbar attempt, drawing Rousey in for a glare. Everything breaks down and a Hart Attack (with Natalya playing her father of course) takes us to a break.

Back with Bliss throwing Mickie into the corner but stopping to mock Rousey’s punches, allowing Mickie to make the hot tag. Rousey is a bit too aggressive though and Mickie gets in a cheap shot to give the villains control. Bliss stomps away in the corner and James kicks her in the ribs to put Rousey in some very rare trouble. Rousey start throwing punches though, including rolling into a right hand to Bliss. James gets tossed around and the armbar is good for the tap at 13:53.

Rating: C. Perfect formula based tag match here and that’s a good idea for Rousey. They were playing up the rib injury here and that’s the kind of thing that can give Sunday’s match a little flavor. You can only have her steamroll people for so long and while the idea of Bliss hanging with her is a stretch at least, someone has to do it.

Post match Bliss kicks Rousey in the ribs to bang them up a little more.

Video on the Smackdown Women’s Title match. I can dig this cross promotion.

We run down Sunday’s card.

Elias spits water at someone when Strowman comes through the hallway, screaming for Roman.

Rousey is ready to fight again and doesn’t worry about her ribs.

Here’s Elias to talk about how he’s perfected rock and roll. The fans certainly seem to approve and he wants to know who wants to walk with him. Of course he makes fun of the Saints, swearing the Drew Brees told him that the season was already over. Cue Mick Foley, with a bad looking perm, to interrupt.

Foley says he’s a big fan and while Elias isn’t Nita Strauss, Elias doesn’t have a sincere bone in his body. Elias talks about being in the arena to watch Foley vs. Undertaker inside the Cell. That was a special moment but now Foley is a sad man who has been singing the same sad song for twenty years.

Foley actually isn’t here to discuss the past but rather the future. Apparently Foley lives pretty close to Stephanie McMahon and went to her with an offer. He wants to be part of Sunday’s show, which has made him flash back to 1998. That night, Foley got off the stretcher and got back on the cage. That’s why this Sunday, he’s going to be the guest referee for Reigns vs. Strowman. Elias doesn’t like the idea and tells Foley to leave while he can. That’s not cool with Foley, who is allowed to make one match tonight to take some pressure off of Corbin. The match is after a break.

Strowman wrecks more stuff.

Elias vs. Finn Balor

Elias starts fast with a clothesline and we hit the early neck crank. That lasts even less time than usual as Balor is back up with a basement dropkick. Elias whips him hard into the corner though and grabs a nerve hold. Balor pops back up again and hits a Sling Blade, only to charge into a jumping knee. Back from a break with Balor sending him to the floor but Elias charges back in with a hard clothesline. An electric chair Batista Bomb gets two but Balor grabs a small package for the pin at 10:18. It’s as sudden as it sounds.

Rating: D+. Nothing to see here, again, as neither really has anything going on at the moment. That being said, I’ll take this over another Balor vs. Corbin match anytime as at least this one had some potential to be entertaining, just from Elias having a microphone. At least they both made it onto the show, and that’s about all the positives there are here. Just a match really.

Earlier today, Bobby Lashley was working out when Lio Rush was talking him up. Lashley got a bit annoyed but told Rush to motivate him. I’ll take the cruiserweights doing these little roles. It’s far better than signing new talents when you already have them there in the first place.

Strowman knows Reigns is here and is going to call him out from the ring.

Undertaker is here next week.

Here’s Strowman to call out Reigns. No one shows up and Strowman says Reigns won’t be able to run on Sunday. Strowman will get his hands on Reigns and then hurt Foley far worse than Undertaker ever did. Reigns pops up on the announcers’ table so Strowman goes after him, earning himself a Samoan drop off said table through part of the stage to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. This show has gotten lost and is having a really hard time getting out. Again, at least part of that is due to trying to hype up multiple shows at once. The big story is still Undertaker vs. HHH with Reigns vs. Strowman a close second. The problem is they’re not making me believe that this Sunday’s show means much. It’s pretty clear that we’re heading to a big six man tag between the top trios and while that’s good, it’s not exactly making me want to see the next matches.

Strowman and Reigns have a very long history together but you don’t hear anything about that. Instead it’s all based on the cash-in from a few weeks ago, which isn’t worthy of a Cell match. Then there’s Foley being added, which comes off like a way to get people to care about the match when the match itself isn’t doing so. Other than that it’s the Tag Team Title match, which is the logical way to go but doesn’t feel like it’s all that important. The rest of the card…bleh. Look at this week’s show. Of the six matches featured, four of them involved all people who aren’t on Sunday’s card. How is that the best go home show they have?

Results

Nikki Bella b. Ruby Riott – Rack Attack 2.0

AOP b. Ronnie Ace/Nathan Bradley – Super Collider

Dolph Ziggler/Drew McIntyre b. B Team – Zig Zag/Claymore combination to Dallas

Chad Gable/Bobby Roode b. Ascension – Rolling Chaos Theory to Viktor

Ronda Rousey/Natalya b. Alexa Bliss/Mickie James – Armbar to James

Finn Balor b. Elias – Small package

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 5, 2004
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 12,000
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Jim Ross

We’re less than two weeks away from Backlash and things are already starting to come together. It’s a rare case of the Raw crew being miles ahead of their Smackdown brethren as the combined forces of Chris Benoit, Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley and Shelton Benjamin fight Evolution. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Shelton beating HHH. Still a very nice surprise.

Opening sequence.

Here’s HHH (with his music only starting halfway down the ramp) to open things up. He’s not happy with some young punk coming over from Smackdown and thinking he can get in the ring with the greatest wrestler alive today. Then the guy (HHH won’t say his name) actually WINS and gets his hand raised. It was just a fluke though and it’s not happening again in a million years.

Just like Chris Benoit beating HHH again in a rematch of the greatest main event in Wrestlemania history. See, this time Benoit is in the same place that HHH was in before: he doesn’t even have to get beaten to lose the title. The odds are stacked so high against Benoit in the first place but when you consider that both triple threat matches include HHH, it’s just impossible.

Cue Shelton Benjamin to brag about winning, much to HHH’s annoyance. Shelton actually challenges him to a rematch tonight but HHH doesn’t sound impressed. He turns the rematch down but it’s him doing a favor for Shelton. No one beats HHH. Shelton: “Correction: I did.” That’s enough for HHH to accept the rematch for tonight. HHH: “It’s going to be the greatest wrestler in the world vs…..what the h*** ever your name is.” Shelton laughs it off because after tonight, HHH can call him Mr. Benjamin. Longer than necessary (as always with HHH) but the no name thing was great and Shelton sounded good.

Video on the recent trip to Mexico.

Chris Benoit vs. Rob Conway

Non-title. Hang on though as Johnny Nitro (now coming out to the old Nitro theme song for a little flashback) is guest referee again, despite his arm being in a sling. Benoit goes straight to the chops but stops to yell at Nitro. Sylvan Grenier grabs the champ’s foot and Conway rakes the eyes. A snap suplex gets two and it’s off to a neck crank.

Benoit powers out and throws more chops, followed by a backbreaker for two. A snap suplex to Conway takes out Nitro so La Resistance comes in for what would eventually become known as the Magic Killer, which gets two from a replacement referee (who apparently saw the bump but not the interference). The Crossface makes Conway tap.

Rating: C-. Conway’s time on offense wasn’t the best but Benoit didn’t have much trouble and beat up a team who wasn’t exactly intimidating in the first place. Nitro makes for a nice little pest and hopefully they leave it at that instead of going with Benoit vs. Bischoff in the same old story.

The returning William Regal comes in to see Bischoff but Eric isn’t sure he can have a job. After a discussion of Regal joining Vince’s club, Bischoff says he’s brought Regal here to manage a special talent. He’s in his 20s, 6’1 and 240lbs and a very “special” talent. His name is Eugene Dinsmore, and Regal thankfully agrees.

Chris Jericho vs. Matt Hardy

Matt has broken his nose three times and never over-orders in restaurants. Trish Stratus and Christian bring a chair to the stage and watch the match, allowing Matt to get in a cheap shot from behind to start. An elbow to the back sets up Matt pulling on both of Jericho’s arms but Jericho scores with the running bulldog. The Lionsault misses and the Walls are broken up so Jericho hits the running enziguri instead. Now the Walls are enough to make Matt tap.

Rating: D+. Just a quick match here but it gives Jericho a win for the sake of some momentum, which he really needs after everything that’s happened to him in recent weeks. Matt’s losing streak continues because that’s his lot in life for some reason. The match didn’t have time to go anywhere, but this wasn’t really supposed to be competitive.

Christian kisses Trish to mess with Jericho some more.

Mick Foley is sitting in a rocking chair with a box over his lap and a flower in his hand. As he smells the flower, he talks about never forgetting your first time. During his career, he would pick up a few during the week, use them for a few days, and hand them off to a lucky fan. He means the flannel shirts of course, and he got his first one in 1977. The other day he found the original one, and that brought him back to the hardcore state of mind.

Hardcore isn’t about chairs or trashcans, but about being willing to put himself through unimaginable pain for the sake of the fans. When he went to Japan and took part in some barbaric matches, he did what he had to do for the sake of paying the bills. Foley has sworn that he would never do that again or even watch the matches, but now he’s seen them all fresh. He did some inhumane things but they didn’t catch his eyes.

No it was his eyes that caught his eye because deep down, maybe there was a little part of him that didn’t mind hurting people like that. Maybe deep down he loves it. Foley did those things to people he didn’t hate so what is he going to do to someone like Orton, who has done so many things to him?

Everyone promises to hurt someone, but that’s not what Foley is going to do to Orton. He’s going to use one of his old friends named Barbie (which he takes out of the box) and use it to cave Orton’s skull in, drawing the kind of blood usually reserved for special effects in Mel Gibson Biblical epics. Foley uses Barbie to break the set and promises to love it. This was the Foley that we’ve been needing to see and you believe every word he said.

Orton watches this and is as scared as he should be. Flair’s pep talk doesn’t work this time, nor does HHH talking about beating Shelton.

Shelton Benjamin vs. HHH

Before the match, Flair is in the ring and demands his own introduction. According to Bischoff, anyone out here must be on official business. Therefore, Flair is your announcer, Batista is timekeeper, and Orton is the official trainer (complete with stool and spit bucket). JR: “This is starting to reek like nine week old cheese.” HHH is all annoyed and punches him into the corner to start.

A crossbody gives Shelton two so JR lists off all of his college accolades. HHH cuts him off with a spinebuster and throws Shelton outside for a drop onto the barricade from Batista. Back in and Shelton scores with some right hands until a facebuster cuts him off again. HHH shouts a lot but charges into a raised boot as Lawler is starting to get a little nervous. The Stinger Splash (which finished HHH last week) sends HHH outside with Shelton catapulting HHH into the post for the countout win.

Rating: D. The wrestling was nothing but that’s not the point here. Shelton gets another win over HHH and even defeats the forces of Evolution to pull it off. He already has the pinfall win so while the countout wasn’t as impressive, it’s a huge relief to have HHH lose again instead of getting his win back. I’m not sure how smart it is to do this before he’s main eventing a pay per view, but this could be more important in the long term.

Post match the Evolution beatdown is on with Shelton being busted open. Benoit, Michaels and Foley (with Barbie) make the save.

After a break, Bischoff storms the commentary booth and says Shelton is going to the hospital. Benoit, Michaels and Foley are getting yelled at later.

Battle Royal

Lita, Jazz, Nidia, Molly Holly, Stacy Keibler, Gail Kim, Trish Stratus

The winner gets a title shot at Backlash. We’re joined in progress…with just Trish, Lita and Jazz left. Really? Like….REALLY? You can’t even keep them around until we’re back from a break? Not even two more of them or something? Anyway, Jazz is eliminated ten seconds later and it’s down to two. They circle each other and we look back at the eliminations, making me wonder why in the world they did it this way. Lita swats away a handshake attempt and slaps her in the face, only to get caught in a fireman’s carry.

That goes nowhere so here’s Jericho to cheer for Lita. You know, the other person involved in his bet with Christian. Trish hangs on as Lawler is worried about her damaged pectoral muscles. Jericho trips Trish though and Lita dropkicks her out (through the bottom two ropes) for the title shot.

Rating: F. Sweet goodness what’s the point? No really, I’d love an explanation of why this was a seven woman battle royal when about three seconds of the four and a half minutes that we saw had more than two people involved. Just do a triple threat match or something but don’t do this, which was one of the dumbest things I’ve ever seen them air match wise.

Smackdown rebound, looking at the Great American Award Nominee matches.

Regal finds Eugene and let’s just get this over with. Eugene is of course mentally handicapped (you know the word they’re likely going to skirt around) and can barely say anything besides his own name. He does have a nametag saying “Hello, my name is Eugene.” Regal gets a hug and Eugene says “manager”. Regal calls Bischoff a dirty rotten swine.

Coach comes out to commentary to show Tajiri misting him last week.

Christian tells Trish that the match against Jericho at Backlash is actually a handicap match. Trish is NOT happy.

Christian vs. Tajiri

Coach is on commentary. Christian shrugs off some early kicks and it’s already time for Coach to come to the ring. Back up and Tajiri hits the handspring elbow, followed by the Tarantula. The Unprettier is broken up with another kick but Coach breaks up the Buzzsaw kick with a trip. Now the Unprettier connects to give Christian the fast pin.

Backlash rundown.

Regal leaves Eugene outside of Bischoff’s office before going inside to say Bischoff can’t put him with that window licker. Bischoff freaks out because Eugene has been left alone (like he was when Regal found him) and of course he’s gone. Eugene is now on commentary with Lawler saying “special” over and over. Lawler says Eugene’s gear is wacky so Eugene starts walking around like the Bushwhackers and licks Jerry. Regal comes in for the save and gets rid of Eugene, as this is already looking bad.

Kane vs. Rhyno

Rhyno gets jumped before the bell and Kane wraps his arm around the post. Back up and Rhyno slugs away, followed by a flying shoulder which breaks the middle rope. That always looks cool. The Gore gets two but Kane pops up with a big boot and the chokeslam for the pin. I wonder if the broken rope made that one shorter.

Post match here’s Edge, with a cast on his hand, for the brawl. Kane gets the better of it but goes for a chair, allowing Edge to lay him out with a cast shot.

Benoit and Michaels don’t think much of Bischoff’s orders to meet him in the ring. Last week’s near title win was awesome so Shawn has his back anytime. Until Backlash that is. Foley comes in and says they’re united tonight. Johnny Nitro shows up and makes Foley put the bat down. If anything happens to it, Nitro is responsible. Benoit hits Nitro in the bad arm.

Here’s Bischoff for the big show closing yelling. Benoit, Michaels and Foley come in and Bischoff makes an eight man tag with the three of them teaming up to face Evolution next week. Evolution’s music plays and they try to come in from behind so the fight can be on. HHH sledgehammers Shawn in the back and chairs Benoit down. A Pedigree onto the chair plants Benoit and Evolution stands tall with HHH holding the title up to end the show. Nice segment here and it’s going to make Shelton look all the more important when he’s there to even the odds next week.

Overall Rating: C+. They’re actually going somewhere at the moment and that’s a lot more than I was expecting. Benjamin is starting to get a push and putting him in the main event with that level of talent is a good sign for him. Jericho and Christian are still going pretty strong and we’ll see what can come out of the Edge vs. Kane stuff. Some of the stuff isn’t all that great, but there’s clearly a point to most of the stuff (even Coach vs. Tajiri is a story) and that’s WAY better than some the stuff this company was doing just a year or so ago.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 3, 2018
Location: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

As the months change, so do things around here on Raw. Last week saw Braun Strowman turn heel and join forces with Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre for the sake of fighting the Shield. Now that being said, the fans aren’t likely to boo them anyway, because that’s just how things work with Roman Reigns. Let’s get to it.

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

Here are Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre to open things up. After a clip of last week’s attack on the Shield, Strowman talks about how that was justice. Two weeks ago, Strowman was ready to become Universal Champion but the Shield got involved. All that Reigns had to do was take his beating like a man, but now we have to go a different way, like it or not.

Strowman says that he has a path now with Ziggler and McIntyre at his side. Inside the Cell, he’s going to break Reigns’ spirit and body and there is no one to stop him. McIntyre says no one will ever be as dominant as they are. Ziggler promises to be more dominant than any group ever, including the Nation of Domination or D-Generation X.

The challenge is thrown out so here’s the Shield, only to have Baron Corbin send out some goons to stop them. That goes nowhere so Corbin sends out more of them but they’re taken out as well. The third batch is finally enough to keep Shield back, though they eventually break free and chase Strowman and company to the back.

Post break, Shield is arrested and taken away in an ambulance.

Riott Squad vs. Bella Twins

The Bellas get the big entrance, including a plug for the premiere of Total Divas. Nikki hiptosses Morgan down to start as the announcers talk about Brie having a baby six months ago and all the wedding planning. A tornado flying armbar out of the corner gives Nikki two and it’s off to Brie for another armbar. It’s not enough to prevent a tag though and Morgan comes in for a kick to the back. It’s already back to Morgan, who get YES Kicked in short order.

The BRIE MODE knee hits Logan and Brie tries a suicide dive….but either completely botches it by getting caught on the ropes or Logan wasn’t ready to forearm her out of the air. Either way it looked like a disaster and takes us to a break. Back with Brie fighting out of a chinlock and diving over for the hot tag to Nikki. Everything breaks down and Brie botches another suicide dive, this time just not clearing the ropes. Nikki gives Morgan the Rack Attack 2.0 to finish things at 11:04 before Brie can botch anything else.

Rating: D-. Those two botches were terrible and didn’t do anything to get rid of the theory that the Bellas are really not very good in the ring. The announcers sounded like they were reading a list of awesome facts about the two of them and it felt more like a plug for Total Divas than a match. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of them in the future, probably because the reality shows need new storylines. Lucky us.

Corbin is on the phone with Stephanie when Finn Balor comes in. Balor wants a rematch and thinks Corbin is overcompensating for something. Tonight, the rematch should be one on one, man against man. Corbin agrees, with the match taking place in two hours in the main event. He’s a more scheduled boss than Angle ever was.

Chad Gable and Bobby Roode are now a team because Roode has impressed him. It’s not like they have anything else to do.

Chad Gable/Bobby Roode vs. Ascension

Before the match, Konnor says Roode was a flash in the pan and couldn’t make it in the singles division. Then you have Gable, who is short. That’s not something you say to Gable, who German suplexes both of them and hands it off to Roode for a suplex of his own. Konnor takes him into the corner to stomp away and it’s off to the chinlock. Viktor gets in his own stomping before it’s back to Gable to clean house. A cannonball off the apron drops Konnor and it’s a missile dropkick to Viktor. Rolling Chaos Theory finishes Viktor at 6:01.

Rating: D+. I mean, it’s not like we have anything better for the tag division and there’s no need to bring in someone new when you have these people sitting around doing nothing. I’m fine with the team and maybe they’ll go somewhere. The match wasn’t too bad and once they get some chemistry together, things could go well. Take a shot and see what happens.

Here’s Elias to talk about living in an insane world and being slapped by an insane girl last week. The only solution is to follow him to the promised land. Last week Trish Stratus came out here and slapped him, which is clearly due to her struggling with the fact that WWE stands for WALK WITH ELIAS. Next up, what is up with the Ohio State Buckeyes? What is a Buckeye anyway? It’s not something like a Wolverine, which actually sounds intimidating.

Before he gets too far though, here’s hometown girl Alexa Bliss, along with Mickie James and Alicia Fox. Bliss is proud to be from here and graduated high school right here in this very building. She starts an OH-IO chant….and it’s time to rip on the crowd of course. She recognizes some of the zombies that she went to high school with and look where they are while she’s in the spotlight. Alexa apologizes for Trish’s actions last week and doesn’t even want to get started on Ronda Rousey and her pet cat Natalya. She’s like some music but here’s Rousey to interrupt.

Natalya vs. Alexa Bliss

Rousey, Fox and James are at ringside. Bliss hides in the ropes a few times to start before having a Stratusfaction attempt countered (with Cole and Graves making fun of each other and missing the move entirely). A hard forearm to the face drops Natalya in the corner so Fox and James can slap her a lot. Bliss hits a DDT and grabs an armbar to make Natalya scream a lot and tap at 3:14.

Rating: D. Anyone want to have a good match tonight? This was short and bad, though it did give Bliss some momentum before she gets annihilated by Rousey. The shorter time helped it a bit but when that’s about as high praise as you can give a match, it’s pretty clear that there’s a problem.

Post match Bliss stays on her but Rousey cleans house. Fox gets knocked to the floor but the distraction lets Bliss chop block Rousey. Some right hands send Bliss to the floor as Rousey is having trouble standing.

We recap the opening brawl.

Shield has been processed and fingerprinted at the precinct.

Corbin gives someone his Rolex to get cleaned. Not a good idea at 9:15 at night. Strowman and company come in with a demand for competition tonight. Drew and Dolph want a Tag Team Title shot tonight and imply that they’ll take out Revival to get their title shot. The two of them leave and Strowman tells Corbin to find him some competition tonight.

Revival is ready for their title shot when Ziggler and McIntyre jump them for the big beatdown.

Tag Team Titles: B Team vs. Revival

Revival is challenging…or at least they would be if they weren’t taken out before the break. Therefore, it’s time for some replacements.

Tag Team Titles: B Team vs. Dolph Ziggler/Drew McIntyre

The B Team is defending and McIntyre drops both of them in about five seconds. Dallas low bridges McIntyre to the floor though and Axel gets two off a backslide. A clothesline puts Ziggler on the floor and the champs actually make it to a break. Back with McIntyre holding Dallas in an armbar and getting two off a suplex.

Ziggler comes in for some right hands and kicks the air in front of Dallas’ knee to set up a dropkick. McIntyre gets caught in a neckbreaker and the hot tag brings in Axel for the PerfectPlex on Ziggler. A quick save lets everything break down and Axel eats a superkick. The Claymore into the Zig Zag gives us new champions at 10:10.

Rating: D+. Where do I start? First of all, if you want to get Ziggler and McIntyre over as killers, don’t have them take ten minutes to beat a pair of comedy guys. This should have been about 90 seconds long and ended in the opening domination. Second, if you want Ziggler to break out of the mold of being a midcarder who never gets to break into the main event picture, don’t have him win a title that is viewed as lower than the midcard title.

The Authors of Pain and Drake Maverick are walking in the back with Maverick in a matching vest.

Connor’s Cure video, with a kid dressed up as a wrestling superhero. Cancer can’t see him.

Authors of Pain vs. Rakib Thompson/Jimmy James

Before the destruction, Maverick says he’s the Authors’ new manager and they’ll win the Tag Team Titles. I mean….sure why not. The Super Collider is good for the pin at 52 seconds.

Remember last week’s videos where legends talked about HHH vs. Undertaker? Well here’s another video, this time featuring a lot of the same clips in a different order. I really hope they stop with this promoting three shows at the same time thing.

Rousey is checking on Natalya when the Bellas come in. Natalya leaves and the Bellas praise Rousey, using those acting abilities. They offer to be her training partners or to help her with outside ventures, like starting a business or writing a book. Rousey thanks them and they talk over each other.

Here’s Shawn Michaels to talk about HHH vs. Undertaker in Australia. After allowing fans to shower him with praise and plugging some things (new shirt, the Network and Super Show-Down), Shawn talks about his fellow Hall of Famers’ predictions for the match. He wonders if the Streak being over has something to do with the picks, but he’s still picking HHH. Yeah they’re best friends, but HHH still has more left in the tank.

At Super Show-Down, with Shawn in attendance, the Cerebral Assassin is going to cerebrally assassinate Undertaker….and there goes the gong. Undertaker comes out and in a really cool visual, the lighting flashes against Shawn’s shirt, making the heart logo flash on and off. After the two hour and seventeen minute entrance, Undertaker says this just became personal. He talks about HHH and Shawn’s twenty year friendship (minus the part where they tried to kill each other) and brings up taking Shawn’s career.

Shawn says that’s not what this is about. He’s a man of his word and someone had to be a man of his word by actually staying out of the ring. He’s the only person to stay retired and he’s done it out of respect for Undertaker. Cue the ONE MORE MATCH chants, which Shawn says he hears every time he steps into an arena.

For nearly a decade, everyone knocks on his door at Wrestlemania season, begging for a dream match and he has to turn down millions of dollars because he respects Undertaker. Shawn goes to leave, but Undertaker asks if it’s respect or fear. If Shawn had ever chosen to come out of retirement, it would have been for Undertaker, and he would have put him down all over again. In Australia, Undertaker is going to put HHH down again.

It’s a good segment and I want to see HHH vs. Undertaker again, but I’m worried about the match being a huge letdown. I can’t imagine that doesn’t close the show in a 20+ minute match and that’s not really Undertaker’s strong suit anymore. Teasing Shawn vs. Undertaker again isn’t the best idea as I can’t imagine Shawn actually working one more match, no matter what. Still though, this was effective and had the result they were shooting for.

Corbin comes in to see Balor and says they can’t have their match tonight. Don’t worry though because Balor can face Strowman instead. So they’re doing a bait and switch on a match they made an hour and forty minutes ago?

Shield has been arraigned. Harold T. Stone thinks that’s a fast court.

Sasha Banks/Bayley vs. Dana Brooke/Ember Moon

Remember when Moon was given the big debut on Raw about five months ago? Banks hits a seated Meteora and we take a break less than a minute in. Back with Moon headscissoring Bayley and hitting a spinning springboard crossbody to take both of them down. It’s off to Brooke, who has to fight out of the Backstabber. Titus Worldwide offers her advice but she says she has this. She’s rolled up for the pin a few seconds later at 5:53. This match totally needed that break in the middle.

Post match Brooke says she’s had it with Titus and Apollo and walks away.

Renee talks about Balor vs. Strowman tonight, even though the graphic still has Corbin’s picture on it. That’s a pretty rare error.

Bobby Lashley leaves Corbin’s office with a piece of paper. It’s a performance review (ERG), saying he’s rather violent and has to undergo meditation in the ring with Jinder Mahal tonight.

Jinder is in the ring for the meditation and Lashley joins him. There is an angry energy coming from Lashley so Mahal has him sit down on the rub and they talk about Lashley being water. Mahal says shanti over and over again until Kevin Owens runs in through the crowd and stomps on Lashley. A distraction from Mahal allows Owens to hit a superkick, followed by the apron powerbomb. Well it lasted longer than I thought it would.

Clip of Shawn/Undertaker.

Next week: Mick Foley.

Shield has posted bail and left the precinct.

Finn Balor vs. Braun Strowman

McIntyre and Ziggler are out with Strowman. Balor gets knocked down in a hurry to start and a side slam makes it even worse. A sleeper doesn’t do him much good either so it’s a low bridge to send Strowman outside as we go to a break. Back with Balor fighting out of a chinlock but being sent outside for his efforts.

That’s a little better for Balor, who catches Strowman with a Sling Blade on the floor. They head back inside with Balor trying another sleeper before avoiding a charge to send Strowman into the post. That means the running flip dive to all three villains and Balor is rolling. Back in and Balor slaps on a triangle choke but Strowman muscles his way out. The powerslam finishes Balor at 10:37.

Rating: C. Match of the night here by about a mile. There was a little history here with Strowman being Balor’s friend for all of five minutes before destroying him in the match. A clean win like this does give Strowman some more momentum heading into the Cell and that’s a good idea. It certainly means more than beating the comedy goons.

Post match the beating is still on until a police siren goes off. A police van backs into the arena and it’s Reigns driving. Ambrose and Rollins come out of the back but the roster jumps them from behind. Reigns gets crushed by the steps, Rollins is knocked off the stage and Ambrose is laid out on the announcers’ table. The big beatdown continues to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. The Undertaker/Shawn segment and the closing segment were god but that’s nowhere near enough to fix the rest of this dismal show. You could tell it was a holiday edition this week as there was no fire to anything and the wrestling was as dull as you could have imagined. I’m not sure what it says when two mostly retired wrestlers having a match to renew a rivalry that ended six and a half years ago are more interesting than another rather good rivalry going to the Cell, but that’s what they’ve managed to pull off here. It’s a really weak show and Raw isn’t showing any signs of getting better at the moment.

Results

Bella Twins b. Riott Squad – Rack Attack 2.0 to Morgan

Chad Gable/Bobby Roode b. Ascension – Rolling Chaos Theory to Viktor

Alexa Bliss b. Natalya – Armbar

Dolph Ziggler/Drew McIntyre b. B Team – Claymore/Zig Zag combination to Axel

Authors of Pain b. Rakib Thompson/Jimmy James – Super Collider to James

Bayley/Sasha Banks b. Dana Brooke/Ember Moon – Rollup to Brooke

Braun Strowman b. Finn Balor – Running powerslam

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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