And……yeah.The promotion was announced the day after Wrestlemania XXX and I have no idea what they spent all that time setting up. From what I’ve seen (including part of a stream of their first show), it’s really nothing out of the ordinary. It’s not terrible or anything but it looks like a fairly big time indy in a baseball stadium. There are some faces you might remember mixed with some local talent and some bigger names near the main event. Now of course there have just been two house shows, but this really doesn’t look like anything great so far. If nothing else having some champions crowned in a few weeks will help, but it seems pretty meh so far.
Wrestling Wars Podcast Episode 12
NorCal and Ty preview Money in the Bank and look at the NFC West.
Lucha Underground – June 10, 2015: This Show Looks Great In Sunglasses
Lucha Underground Date: June 10, 2015
Location: Lucha Underground Arena, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Matt Striker, Vampiro
The big story coming out of last week was Vampiro running in to save Sexy Star from Pentagon Jr. being all evil and trying to break her arm. This led to Vampiro going a bit nuts and headbutting a mirror because he’s kind of out there at times. Hopefully some of the bigger names come back this week to break up some of the monotony that we saw last week. Let’s get to it.
The opening video recaps Chavo/the Cuetos/Black Lotus with Chavo selling out Lotus for the sake of protection from Mexico. Not any group of people from Mexico mind you, but all of Mexico in general. We also see Drago turning into smoke or whatever.
Speaking of Drago, he’s on top of the temple, now with wings (Drago, not the temple) and dives off in a rare sunny moment.
Vampiro apologizes for getting in the ring last week because he’s just a broadcaster.
Dario is in the ring and says there will be a major show in eight weeks called Ultima Lucha (Final Fight). This will be a yearly event with the biggest fights and most amazing matches, but tonight we’ll start the process to determine the #1 contender for the Lucha Underground Title match. Dario has invited all of the former #1 contenders here tonight, including Hernandez, King Cuerno, Cage and Fenix….who is gone right now so it’s just a three way.
However, before we get to that, it’s time for the return of a legend: Blue Demon Jr. Cueto knows that Demon likes big events with big paydays like Ultima Lucha, but first he has to prove that he still has it, against this man who is also making his return to the temple here tonight.
Blue Demon Jr. vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.
Chavo has the Crew as his protection and Demon is in street clothes. Oh and anything goes. Chavo knocks him into the ropes to start but Demon backdrops him out to the floor. The Crew takes some forearms of their own but they beat him down, allowing Chavo to hit a LOUD chop to the exposed chest. All four get inside now and it’s kendo stick time. A bunch of kendo stick shots to the back and a DDT with a double stomp from the top set up the frog splash to give Chavo the easy win.
Rating: N/A. This was barely long enough to rate and was an angle instead of a match so I’m not even going to bother rating it. Demon is one of those names that makes this show big in Mexico but really doesn’t do much here in America. I get that his dad is very famous and that he’s had a good career of his own, but he’s still old and slow and in this spot for no reason other than his name. Also, Chavo is really happy with the two members of the Crew who didn’t get killed as his security? Were the Desperadoes unavailable because they were still looking for Stan Hansen?
Drago is inside the temple.
Black Lotus is in the cage when Chavo comes in. Mexico (again, the entire country) will come after him for his betrayal. Chavo leaves, telling her to enjoy the view of Matanza in the next cage.
Drago grabs Cueto and wants to be in the #1 contenders match tonight. Apparently Drago has found a loophole and can be in the match tonight, but Cueto says it’s either win or lose his mask. The deal is on.
Bengala/Mascarita Sagrada/Pimpinela Escarlata vs. Disciples of Death
These would be the three guys that back up Muertes, because he needs heavies of course. Catrina is here with the monsters. Pimpinela starts things off and chops the one with a shirt in the chest. They head outside with Pimpinela being sent into the crowd because this is a comedy match so far. Off to Bengala for some cat jokes but the two shirtless Disciples pound him down with ease. Sagrada trips them up though because he’s small enough to sneak around like that. Not that it’s smart to have a mini take out two guys called the DISCIPLES OF DEATH but at least they’re trying.
Bengala takes out the shirted one with a big corkscrew dive to the floor and Sagrada comes in legally. Thankfully he’s quickly stomped down as Escarlata gets beaten down on the floor. A triple kick puts Mascarita down again and this time it’s Bengala taking the beating. Mascarita gets two off a victory roll as everything breaks down. The Hardys’ old Spin Cycle move connects with the third man adding a springboard missile dropkick to put Bengala down even harder. Escarlta gets kicked in the face and Catrina adds a lick to the face (Vampiro: “That was like, weird.”), setting up a triple Dominator for the pin.
Rating: D-. Oh man did they miss the point here. The team is obviously supposed to be something big and bad, but they’re having issues with two comedy characters and a low level act like Bengala? This would be Heath Slater making Roman Reigns sweat and that’s not the idea in a team’s first TV match.
Johnny Mundo wants to know why he isn’t in the #1 contenders match tonight. Cueto chuckles and says he wants Mundo to be champion at Ultima Lucha. They’re supposed to have a fresh start and Cueto isn’t holding a grudge. “You gave me a black eye. So what? I look great in sunglasses.” And that is why Cueto is the best heel in probably fifteen years. It was the attack on Alberto that showed Cueto who the real Johnny was, so he wants to see Mundo destroy the Prince Puma next week in a show long Iron Man match. Johnny thinks Cueto might be the best boss he’s ever had.
Drago vs. King Cuerno vs. Cage vs. Hernandez
If Drago doesn’t win, he’s banished and must unmask. This is considered shocking even though it was mentioned earlier in the night. Hernandez and Cage knock the other two outside in a few seconds and the brawl is on. That lasts another ten seconds so it’s off to Cuerno vs. Drago. Cuerno gets kneed in the face and Hernandez adds a slingshot shoulder, followed by a Warrior gorilla press drop.
Cage breaks up the Border Toss and plays D-Von in a 3D, only to end in a knee to the face instead of a cutter. Cuerno and Cage kick Drago outside before squaring off in one of the few combinations left. That goes nowhere as a double suplex drops Hernandez but Drago comes in for the save.
Drago’s double clothesline to Cuerno and Cage sends him down to the mat instead, so Drago goes up top. That doesn’t work either as Cage just catches him in mid air and throws him down. Hernandez runs Cuerno over and we’re down to Hernandez vs. Drago. A huge top rope splash gets two on Hernandez and Killshot is shown watching from the balcony. They switch off again for Cuerno vs. Cage but Drago gets involved and takes another beating. Cage throws in a standing moonsault (that’s impressive) and one ups that with a moonsault press to take Hernandez down again.
Cuerno goes to the floor so Drago can hit a big corkscrew dive but Hernandez dives on both of them. Cage hits his third moonsault of the match to take out Drago and Hernandez. Cuerno points the arrow at Killshot and dives at Drago and Cage, with the latter coming up holding his knee. Back in and Drago blows mist in Cuerno’s eyes and does his freaky rollup for the surprise pin and the title shot.
Rating: B-. It was fun but it was another match that was going so fast that it was almost impossible to keep track of it all. Cage’s moonsaults looked good, but when you do the same move (in different variations) three times in three minutes, they start to lose some of their effect. Still though, not bad.
Puma comes in for the staredown.
Cueto is watching when someone taps him on the shoulder. There’s no one there at first but then it’s Catrina. She says Muertes should have been in that match and chokes Cueto with his key. Cueto gives Muertes a match against Drago in two weeks for the title shot, which appeases Catrina. She goes to leave, but warns Cueto that even Matanza isn’t a match for Muertes.
Overall Rating: C+. This was a rare moving day episode of Lucha Underground as they set forward towards their first major show and set up a bunch of stuff going forward. Above all else, the idea of Muertes getting into the title hunt means Puma’s days are numbered. There is zero reason to not have Muertes as champion so someone can take the belt off him next season, so now the question is how do we get there. Not a great show on its own, but it has me wanting to see where things go and that was the point here.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete Monday Nitro Reviews Volume III at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
Impact Wrestling – May 22, 2015 (International Impact): Oh Yeah They Knew
Impact Wrestling Date: May 22, 2015
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Angelo Dinero
So since Destination America basically threw up a middle finger at TNA on Memorial Day weekend, there was no new episode aired on Friday May 22. However, there was a show airing internationally which has since come online. This is a few weeks old but here it is for the sake of completeness. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of the Hardys having to vacate the Tag Team Titles due to Jeff breaking his leg in a motocross accident, setting up the best of five series between the Dirty Heels and the Wolves.
D’Angelo Dinero is brought out for commentary. Granted that doesn’t mean much here as the only version I could find was in French.
Mandrews vs. Manik vs. Tigre Uno vs. Crazzy Steve vs. Argos vs. Rockstar Spud
Elimination match with no tags because that’s what the X-Division consists of these days. Spud starts fast and cleans house as Steve sits in the corner holding a monkey. Tigre dives over the top to take Manik out before Steve intentionally dives onto no one. He’s crazy you see. Mandrews sends Argos to the apron for a crash onto everyone, leaving Mandrews to hit a great looking shooting star onto the pile.
Back in and Manik pulls Steve out of the way of another Madrews shooting star (which would have missed by three feet anyway), setting up a rollup to get rid of Mandrews. Steve has silly string and clotheslines Manik in the corner, setting up a Cannonball for two. Wait….now there are tags? After that huge mess and insanity they have tags now??? Argos comes in for more clotheslines to Manik, followed by a reverse Shell Shock from Tigre for two. It’s strange to not hear the commentary as there’s far less to make fun of.
Steve comes back in to rip at Tigre’s mask, earning him a kick to the back of the head. Argos runs back in for a gorilla press gutbuster to eliminate Steve. It’s Argos vs. Spud now with Tigre coming in to double team the Rockstar. Tigre goes up top for a kind of top rope seated senton low blow for two and we take a break. Back with Argos hitting a running hurricanrana on Manik as we see Tigre being eliminated during the break to get us down to three.
Spud dropkicks Manik down and hits the Underdog on Argos for an elimination, leaving Spud vs. Manik. They slug it out with Spud getting the better of it with a bunch of punches and some running forearms. The Underdog is broken up and Manik gets two off his tiger suplex into a gutbuster. The same sequence sees Spud counter the gutbuster into a rollup for a near fall, followed by an Underdog from the apron to the ring for the pin at 15:23.
Rating: C. Well, you had six guys, they did moves to each other for fifteen minutes, and one of them didn’t get pinned. That’s what the X-Division has become: meaningless matches with someone coming out on top and no real reason to care about most of them. Other than Spud, these guys are almost interchangeable as far as levels of interest, so why should I care that he beat all of them?
Long recap of the BroMans rise and eventual split. It’s clear that they’re filling a lot of time.
Jesse arrives (sans shirt of course) and says he beat up Robbie because he’s better. Robbie got on a reality TV show after Jesse did so Robbie should be thanking him for his entire career. Robbie can be the Bro, but Jesse will be the Man.
Spud says that’s one step closer to getting the X-Division Title back. The people are with him, not Kenny King.
Jesse Godderz vs. DJZ
Before the match, Jesse says he’s the superstar and the reason they won the Tag Team Titles. He knows he and Zema are supposed to fight, but it would be the same ending that Robbie E. suffered. Jesse isn’t losing to a nobody. A serious DJZ comes out and says he was the X-Division Champion before the BroMans and Jesse was nothing. That’s enough to start the fight with DJZ hitting a quick running hurricanrana to send Jesse outside. A jawbreaker staggers Jesse (you might even say it stuns him) and it’s all DJZ so far.
Jesse comes back with a great dropkick and slaps on an armbar of all things. That goes as far as an armbar is going to go when your name isn’t Alberto and Jesse hot shots him down. DJZ kicks away what appeared to be a Figure Four and hits a Thesz press, only to get stomped back down. A Boston crab of all things makes DJZ give up.
Rating: D+. Jesse is trying and playing a decent heel, but at the end of the day he’s a pretty boy bodybuilder using a Boston crab as his big finisher. That’s not going to get him very far, but this is better than anything else he’s ever done as a singles guy. Robbie E. coming back for a big showdown could be entertaining though.
Magnus says this is about James Storm.
Video on Eric Young vs. Kurt Angle with Young being…….oh you know it by now.
Video on James Storm manipulating Mickie James for reasons that aren’t clear yet aside from he’s evil. Mickie’s fiance Magnus isn’t cool with this. He’ll be a lot less cool with it when he shoves her onto train tracks.
Magnus comes out for a match but says he has to deal with James Storm messing with his family, plus Storm’s Revolution. A few weeks back, Khoya hit him with a big piece of wood. Maybe that’s overcompensating for a smaller piece of wood?
Magnus vs. Khoya
Magnus stomps him down to start and they head outside with Khoya being sent into the barricade. A suplex gets some two counts and for no apparent reason, Magnus puts the referee on top of Khoya and counts two more. Well of course he does. We take a break and come back with Magnus throwing him outside again as we wait for the screw up so Khoya can take over and Magnus can make the comeback.
Magnus swings Khoya’s stick but hits the post and hurts his hands, allowing Khoya to take over. Ah there it is. Khoya stomps away in the corner and clotheslines Magnus down for no cover. A corner splash misses though and Magnus starts his comeback with clotheslines followed by the top rope elbow. A pair of Spine Shakers end Khoya at 9:39.
Rating: D+. Just an extended squash here which is how you should build towards a match like Storm vs. Magnus. It wasn’t anything interesting and Magnus still isn’t worth watching in the ring, but at least he got a win here to give him some momentum before the Slammiversary match.
Bram says he’s crazy and dangerous and he has no remorse. He’s violent you see and he’s coming for Bobby Roode.
Recap of the Tag Team Title best of five series.
Dollhouse video, focusing on their war with Gail Kim and Awesome Kong. The camera slowly zooming in on Taryn’s face as Kong’s music played was a great touch.
Rebel vs. Marti Belle
Before the match, Marti says it can still be playtime even though Taryn isn’t here. Rebel is offered a chance to leave but she won’t say anything. Finally she calls the Dollhouse the Skank House and slaps Jade in the face to get things going. Marti is knocked into Jade’s arms but a baseball slide puts them both down. Jade gets in some cheap shots as Marti gets a chair because the referee is dumb enough to fall for this.
They finally get inside with Marti in control and clotheslining Rebel down to break up a comeback. Rebel scores with a slam and a headscissors, but instead of turning Marti over she pulls her into the back of the trunks for a “comedy” bit. Another Jade distraction lets Marti hit a double arm neckbreaker for the pin at 3:16.
Rating: D. Nothing special here but it’s nice to see that Marti can work a match to go along with her stable mates. It’s a boring match though, partially due to Rebel being little more than a model who they trained to take some bumps. Dull stuff here as you can see the big divide between the top and bottom tiers of Knockouts.
Kenny King isn’t worried about Rockstar Spud and the X-Division Title.
X-Division Title: Mica vs. Kenny King
Oh so King is champion here. I didn’t actually know coming into this. King bails to start but Mica catches him with some right hands to knock the champ outside. Back in and an armbar slows Mica down but he comes back with a slam for two. Not exactly inspiring stuff so far. Mica’s ram into the buckle is countered with King snapping his throat across the ropes before firing some right hands into the face. A spinning kick to the face gets two on Mica but he comes back with a Samoan drop for two more. That’s it for him though as the Royal Flush retains King’s title at 6:40.
Rating: D+. I just do not care about this feud whether there’s a title involved or not. King is fine as the X-Division Champion but Mica and Drake are so dull and uninteresting that there’s almost no way to care about any of them. The fact that the match was dull made it even worse.
Bobby Roode was the World Champion at wrestling but he’s capable of fighting against someone like Bram.
Campaign ad for Ethan Carter III for World Champion. Him winning the title will bring down unemployment and help with the millennial problem. Unfortunately this is used to set up Carter vs. Anderson’s boring match.
Bobby Roode vs. Bram
Roode is the clear face here despite being half of the Dirty Heels tag team because TNA doesn’t think these things through. Bobby cranks on the arm to start but Bram keeps going to the ropes. After a breather on the floor, Bobby knocks him right back to the floor as they’re in first gear so far. Back from a break with the Blockbuster getting two on Bram but he rolls outside and posts Bobby to take over.
More brawling offense from Bram on the floor but Roode slugs away back inside. That earns him a hard whip into the buckle for two and a charge into a boot, only to have Bram charge into a spinebuster. There’s the Roode Bomb but Bram rolls to the floor instead of getting covered, landing in front of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles bag. Roode posts him but has to avoid the referee back inside, earning him a low blow and a handful of trunks to give Bram the pin at 14:05.
Rating: C. Totally average main event here with Roode dominating most of the match and then losing to a fluke at the end. That being said, I like the idea of having Bram get a main event win, even if the next few weeks have shown us that this changed nothing and was really just a match.
Overall Rating: D+. Oh yeah they knew no one was going to watch this show. It was basically a few steps ahead of a One Night Only show, which means you could miss the show and not lose a bit of anything. Nothing show here with a few watchable matches sprinkled throughout. In other words: standard Impact.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete Monday Nitro Reviews Volume III at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
Ring of Honor – June 10, 2015: Thy Kingdom Come Home
Ring of Honor Date: June 10, 2015
Location: Ted Reeve Arena, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Attendance: 1,500
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, King Corino
It’s still Global Wars Night 2 here with more matches taped back in May. We’ve still got two weeks before we get to any shows that have been taped after the Destination America deal was announced. Also, Best in the World 2015 is coming soon, which means the Battle of the Belts with Jay Briscoe’s World Title vs. Jay Lethal’s TV Title. Let’s get to it.
We open with the Addiction saying Red Dragon is finally getting their shot after all their whining and complaining, but tonight they get what they ask for, even though they’re right where the champions want them. Red Dragon has seen what they’ll do to win these titles, so what would they do to keep them?
Opening sequence.
Bobby Fish of Red Dragon has been attacked outside the arena. Not that we get to see it or anything but at least it was mentioned.
Here’s Addiction to open things up in the arena, even though they’re scheduled in the main event. Since Fish is out, there’s no title shot because the contract says against Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish. Daniels offers a shot right now and here’s O’Reilly to fight on his own.
Tag Team Titles: Kyle O’Reilly vs. Addiction
Kyle slugs away on Daniels and Kazarian to start and chops Daniels in the corner before ducking a clothesline from Kazarian, sending him into his partner instead. The numbers finally catch up to him though and a High/Low gives the champions control. I’ve always liked that move. It’s Kazarian starting for the team but it’s quickly back to more double teaming as the champions cheat like heels should be doing.
Kyle sends Daniels to the apron for more miscommunication and everyone heads to the floor with Daniels being sat in a chair. Kazarian is sent head first between Daniels’ legs, setting up a running dropkick off the apron to knock both champions out of the chair. The fans are way into this as you would expect. Back in and Kyle rolls some butterfly suplexes into a cross armbreaker but Daniels comes in with the title belt for the DQ at 4:16.
Rating: C+. I was digging this way more than I was expecting as Kyle kept it going as fast as he could, which is why a four minute match was the best thing they could have done. This felt like an angle instead of a match and there’s nothing wrong with that. This was the kind of energetic opener than was a good option to kick the show off and much better than the Kushida match last week.
Addiction beats Kyle down post match but Matt Sydal and ACH come out for the save.
We recap the ending to last week’s show and see Donovan Dijak hitting the reverse AA into a GTS on Mark Briscoe. That’s a cool move, but it shouldn’t take three tries for us to see it connect.
Mark says he’s going to initiate Dijak into this company and give him a beating. There’s something about ostriches vs. chickens in there too.
Dalton Castle vs. Jushin Thunder Liger
I’ve seen Castle wrestle before and really didn’t think he was as great as people say he is. His entrance is good but there’s almost nothing in the ring to back it up. I’m going to assume you know who Liger is. Castle offers a handshake to start and Liger isn’t sure how to respond. I think we’re in for a comedy match here. Both guys give us clean breaks against the ropes and the ROH fans are already calling this awesome. No, not really no.
The surfboard has Castle in early trouble but since it can only last a few seconds, Castle is able to throw Liger to the floor. Liger ducks what was going to be a dive but Dalton struts around the ring instead. They head outside with Castle being whipped into the apron for a 619 under the bottom rope and back out for a hurricanrana (ok that was sweet) as we take a break. Back with Liger backdropping him to the floor and baseball sliding him into the barricade, setting up a flip dive off the apron.
Liger asks for Castle’s peacock men to come in the ring to steal Castle’s pose, which actually was awesome. An annoyed Dalton comes back in to suplex Liger down and strut into a falling splash. We hit a front facelock and chinlock on Liger for a bit as things slow down as they should. Back up and it’s a double clothesline to give us another tried and true spot. Liger’s top rope hurricanrana gets two but his top rope splash hits knees. The Liger Bomb gets two more and the brainbuster is enough to pin Castle.
Rating: B-. Now that was actually entertaining from Castle. To be fair the other match I saw had him in TNA so maybe I can just blame them for screwing up someone else as is their custom. Castle is a good comedy guy and could go somewhere in the midcard if they build him up in the right way. Liger is always worth a quick look.
They shake hands post match and it’s still cool to hear Liger’s music.
Liger wishes Cheeseburger luck in his match and gives him a quick palm strike (Liger’s signature) demonstration.
Bob Evans vs. Cheeseburger
This is a grudge match between former partners. Evans is an older guy who wears trunks way too small for him and laid out Cheeseburger after a loss. Cheeseburger is a tiny guy who is treated as a huge underdog. We start fast with Cheeseburger kicking him out to the floor but eating a right hand to put the small guy down in a hurry. Cheeseburger dives off the apron to take him down and avoids a charge into the barricade.
Something resembling a swanton off the barricade doesn’t quite crush Bob (Cheeseburger couldn’t crush a sandcastle. Or a Dalton Castle) and he runs Cheeseburger over back inside. A tornado DDT across the top rope gives Cheeseburger an opening and the Seth Rollins springboard knee to the head sends Bob to the apron. That’s fine with Evans as he picks Cheeseburger out of the air and side slams him through a table on the floor for a HUGE crash and a no contest at 2:55. Fans: “REST IN PEACE!” They packed a lot of stuff into a short amount of time here and that’s the right idea with something like this.
Jay Lethal is ready for his contract signing next week and wants Jay Briscoe to bring his pen.
Jay Briscoe tells Lethal to just sign his name next week.
Addiction vs. Red Dragon in a No DQ match at Best in the World.
Kingdom vs. Bullet Club
The Bullet Club is the top heel stable in New Japan but they’re insanely popular anywhere else. This is ROH vs. New Japan again with Matt Taven/Michael Bennett (with Maria Kanellis, who is absolutely gorgeous and looks even better in person) vs. Doc (Luke) Gallows/Karl Anderson. The Kingdom’s IWGP Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line because this isn’t a New Japan show and those belts should be meaningless but they’re from Japan so they’re cool right? Gallows’ face paint, which looks like a black and white stripe prison uniform, looks awesome.
Anderson, who has issues with Maria, goes after her to start but gets cut off by Maria’s husband Bennett. Taven is left alone in the ring and dives onto Bullet Club, who are referred to as the internet darlings. Bennett adds a flip dive off the apron as the ROH contingent is in full control early on. Taven tries to dive off the middle rope but gets caught in a cutter from Anderson, followed by Gallows dropping Bennett on the apron as we take a break.
Back with Bennett in trouble and taking a Brogue Kick from Anderson. A running boot to the face drops him again as this is one sided. Taven crawls back to the apron as a reverse 3D plants Bennett, only to have Taven come off the top with a splash on Anderson to get a breather. The Kingdom fights back with a double dropkick to Gallows and a superkick/spear combo to Gallows. Taven misses a high cross body though and everything breaks down with Anderson and Bennett shoving the referee for the double DQ at 9:38.
Rating: C. Fun match here to set up the six man between the teams and a partner each at Best in the World. There’s a story involved with Anderson having a thing for Maria but it never really went anywhere here. Anytime she’s out there it’s a good thing though as she looks great but is also awesome at being a heel valet.
Post match Bennett is about to be slammed onto chairs but Maria offers a distraction, only to have Bennett eat a cutter and Taven to take the slam through the chairs instead.
Overall Rating: C+. I had a good time with this show and found it much more entertaining than the previous week’s episode. It was more about the in ring action, which has always been one of ROH’s selling points. Instead of just having a bunch of Japanese guys, it focused more on the homegrown talent, which is a better way of getting fans used to the product rather than just talking about guys who aren’t going to be around in a few weeks.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete Monday Nitro Reviews Volume III at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
Checked Out Rey Mysterio’s Masked Man Beyond the Ring
And I really dug it. This is the kind of thing I want to see more of as it was basically an 82 minute shoot (well as shooty as WWE is going to get) interview with no matches or anything and a few clips here and there. It’s cool to slow things down for a change and hear Mysterio’s take on stuff as well as some interesting stories. Do more of these things, which can’t have a high production cost.
Thunder – January 19, 2000: All Hands On Deck
Thunder Date: January 19, 2000
Location: Roberts Memorial Stadium, Evansville, Indiana
Attendance: 2,726
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Mike Tenay, Bobby Heenan
The big story at the moment is how a huge chunk of the midcard and the World Champion are all gone due to Kevin Sullivan being part of the new booking committee. In addition to the talent leaving due to Sullivan, it also means that the show has gone from going 200 miles per hour to about 20 miles per year as the show has slowed way down and gotten a good deal more boring. Let’s get to it.
There’s a closed door meeting taking place.
The NWO arrives.
Tag Team Titles: David Flair/Crowbar vs. Mamalukes
The mafia guys are challenging and Disco sits in on commentary. Vito and David get things going with Young Naitch getting knocked into the corner with ease. I know Crowbar is crazy but how did he consent to letting Flair start? David comes back with some shoulders to the ribs in the corner, only to get nailed in the throat for his efforts. Crowbar dives over the top to take the Mamalukes down and gets two off a cross body.
That goes nowhere as Vito comes back with a delayed suplex, but only after he jogs around the ring while holding Crowbar in the air. Off to Johnny who eats a double clothesline but comes right back with a spinning kick to the head. Everything breaks down and Crowbar powerslams Vito down and drops a top rope splash for two with Johnny making a save. A Lionsault (minus the running start) gets the same as this is basically a handicap match. David gets the crowbar but the Mamalukes kick Crowbar into him (and the bar), setting up the spinning Impaler DDT from Vito for the pin and the titles.
Rating: D. I like the result but not the method they used to get there. It’s very nice to see the titles go to a team that could actually work some decent matches, but the match that got them there was pretty much a mess. David just doesn’t have what it takes to be on this level and it was showing every time they were in the ring. At least the Mamalukes, as mediocre as they are, can work well enough.
Nash talks to the cops.
Page and Kimberly arrive.
The Mamalukes want Disco to take someone out.
Curt Hennig vs. Jim Duggan
Really? As I fathom the fact that these two are fighting in 2000, I took some time to see how many times these guys have fought. Believe it or not, they only have a few house show matches in the WWF and two Thunder matches. You would think these guys would have been a logical pairing at some point. Hennig answers something like an open challenge but doesn’t have on wrestling gear, so Duggan calls him a chicken.
Curt McFly charges to the ring and gets slammed down but he snaps Jim’s throat over the top rope. Some choking and a dropkick follow but Duggan just slugs away to come back. Ten punches in the corner are broken up by an eye poke but Hennig throws Duggan into the referee. You know I hadn’t realized how few ref bumps there had been since Russo was gone. Hennig brings in the 2×4 but Duggan hits the referee by mistake, sending Hennig running away as Duggan’s music plays. Huh?
It’s 3 Count time!!! They do a letterboxed performance and now they even have a super fan in the form of Karate Norman Smiley. Evan, so overwhelmed by the music, charges at him but Norman feels the power and clotheslines him down. All three members are taken out and Norman is so fired up that he issues an open challenge. Cue Tank Abbott because we need to see him every week. Norman fails at using Dave Penzer as a human shield and goes down in one punch. I’m so glad the fans got excited over Smiley until he got knocked cold by Abbott because we haven’t covered that yet.
Lash Leroux vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Psychosis
Sometime tonight we should be getting a statement on Oklahoma and the Cruiserweight Title. Chavo goes after Psychosis to start with some chops as Lash just chills by the ropes. Psychosis escapes a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker before joining Chavo for a double clothesline. That’s about it for the working together as Chavo sends Psychosis into the corner and slams him down, followed by a dropkick to put Lash on the floor. Psychosis and Chavo slug it out but Lash gets back up and dives onto both guys to finally do something in the match.
Back up and Psychosis nails Chavo by mistake, followed by a backbreaker from Leroux. Psychosis is sent outside with Lash following him for a whip into the barricade. This time it’s Chavo hitting the big dive to the floor and everyone is down. Back in again and Lash misses a dive, allowing Chavo to throw Psychosis to the floor. Whiplash is countered and Chavo nails the tornado DDT, only to have Psychosis comes back in with the guillotine legdrop to knock Chavo silly for the pin.
Rating: B-. Much like on Nitro, this was an old school fun cruiserweight match between three guys who should be fighting over the title instead of having Oklahoma hold it as a comedy bit. It’s cool to see Psychosis win as well as he’s an underrated talent, but the same could be said for Chavo. Either way, at least we got an entertaining match.
The Artist still won’t sing.
The Artist Formerly Known As Prince Iaukea vs. Kidman
Kidman has his solo theme back instead of the Filthy Animals’ song. Prince shoves him into the corner to start but gets reversed and beaten up. Paisley earns her paycheck by tripping Kidman so Artist can slam him down and snap a wishbone. This brings out Torrie for her big return as Kidman starts his comeback, only to springboard into a powerslam.
Back up and Kidman gets two off a rollup, only to have his comeback punched down. Another slam sets up something off the top rope but Prince slips going up and almost falls down. I know it happens with everyone, but given that it’s Prince Iaukea I blame his lack of talent. Prince tries a springboard but Torrie pulls him down, allowing Kidman to hit the BK Bomb for the pin.
Rating: D+. Pull the plug on Iaukea already. He doesn’t have it and this new character isn’t masking the fact that he isn’t that good. Yeah he can do basic stuff well enough but anything more than simple offense is a chore for him. You have an army of talented cruiserweights on your roster and this is the best you can do? Kidman was his usual self here so there isn’t much to say about him.
Terry Taylor is escorted to the ring. I wonder if he got an extension can can still have tailor made suits now that it’s 2000.
Here’s Taylor as the executive representative (at least it’s someone who knows how to talk) to address the World Title situation. This coming Monday (because it has to be Monday and not at your next pay per view), there will be a match to determine the Undisputed World Heavyweight Champion. Commissioner Kevin Nash is going to get to pick one participant and the executive committee gets to pick the other. The committee’s pick: Sid Vicious.
This brings out Nash to rip on Taylor a bit and says he’s been reading the commissioner’s handbook, which says he gets to make the matches. The fans chant for Goldberg and again Nash threatens to fire him. As lame as his matches are, at least Nash knows how to antagonize a crowd. This Monday, Sid can have his title shot…..if he beats Jeff Jarrett. As for Nash’s pick, of course it’s himself. It wasn’t specified but I’m assuming Jeff doesn’t get the title shot if he beats Sid.
I’ll give them points for adding in a crowd favorite in Sid and Nash makes sense as the villain, but they couldn’t throw in a curveball here? You have a chance to make a brand new star to distract the fans from the fact that you just lost four young guys and you go with the safe route of Sid? I get the thinking behind it, but this would be a prime chance to pull the trigger on someone. They don’t even have to win the title, but give the fans something to get excited over. Like, at SuperBrawl, not the show five days away.
Nash makes tonight’s main event: Booker T./Big T. vs. Sid/Total Package. Ha that’s good. Now what’s the real main event?
Berlyn vs. The Wall
Time for the blowoff! Berlyn goes after him during the entrances but Wall, the giant monster, grabs a wristlock. Can we get someone to explain the idea of psychology to these people? Berlyn comes back with a nip up and dropkick and the fans already think this is boring. Wall throws him to the floor and drops an elbow to the back but posts himself, allowing Berlyn to dive off the top to take him down.
The second attempt (this time from the apron) doesn’t work as well and Wall throws him inside again. Get this match over with already. Back in and Berlyn tries to flip over Wall but doesn’t get all the way, making the match look even worse. Wall drapes him over the top rope and nails a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker but the chokeslam is broken up by a rake of the eyes. Berlyn hits the ropes, eats a big boot and……gets pinned?
Rating: D. So they established these guys as a team in September and have the horrible blowoff on a show no one is going to watch in January? That’s the best thi…..yeah this actually is the best they can do at this point. Terrible match here as there’s no interest in either guy. They’ve managed to destroy so many members of the roster that there’s no reason to get interested in almost anyone.
This Week In WCW Motorsports. Yes this is still a thing.
Here’s Cruiserweight Champion Oklahoma as he continues to get to book himself into a spot for the sake of his own laughter. He brags about promising to bounce Madusa’s silicone censored back to the kitchen and that’s exactly what he did. After that win, Oklahoma has decided to vacate the title because there’s nothing left for him to accomplish. This brings out Madusa to call Oklahoma a coward before saying she wants to start a women’s division. Oklahoma starts his rebuttal but here’s Sherri Martel of all people to attack Madusa.
So wait. We’ll get to the match in a minute but I need a second here. Not only did Oklahoma set himself up to beat Madusa for the title, vacate it due to weighing 260lbs and cover her with barbecue sauce because making fun of Jim Ross is just oh so funny, but now Madusa is just being moved on to a new feud? In other words, the heel booker gets away with everything with his only comeuppance being the barbecue sauce after he won the title? Well of course it is.
Madusa vs. Sherri Martel
Miss Hancock comes out and sits on the announcers’ table for some fan service. Sherri chokes a lot, Madusa comes back with clotheslines, Sherri goes up and slips, Madusa suplexes her down for the pin. The match lasted a minute.
Nash tells the NWO girls to massage him.
Fit Finlay vs. Jerry Flynn
Not hardcore surprisingly enough. Jerry chops him down to start and pulls Finlay away from the ropes because Fit is trying to hide for some reason. Finlay comes back with an uppercut and let’s look at Buzzkill in the crowd because that’s still going on. Fit knocks him down a few times and drops a middle rope knee and they head outside with Finlay hitting an uppercut.
A chair to the throat puts Jerry in even more trouble but here’s Brian Knobbs with a kendo stick. Brian gets in some stick shots on Flynn but Jerry comes back with some kicks to Finlay. Knobbs goes to the apron with the stick but Finlay is sent into it instead, giving Flynn the fluke rollup pin.
Rating: F. It was slow, it was boring, it had Brian Knobbs and Jerry Flynn is getting a pin on television over someone like Fit Finlay. Flynn is similar to Tank Abbott: here’s there for one reason and for some reason the company insists on pushing him, albeit slowly, no matter how boring he continues to be. Another bad match tonight.
Kanyon vs. Diamond Dallas Page
The Triad fallout continues. Kanyon says he’s beaten Page over and over again now so there’s nothing left to prove. This brings out Kimberly, who is offered a spot in Kanyon’s entourage. Kimberly offers to think about it if the other girls leave. This brings Page through the crowd to get in some cheap shots to start things off. A suplex drops Kanyon and Page knocks him off the apron, setting up a Page dive to the floor.
Back in and Kanyon grabs a swinging neckbreaker (way too popular a move in WCW these days), followed by elbows and a chinlock. Page fights up and they head outside again with Kanyon hitting a quick Fameasser onto the steps. A high cross body from Kanyon is rolled through for two for Page. They slug it out with Page taking over, only to walk into a pumphandle slam for two. Cue J. Biggs with the briefcase but Page knocks him off the apron. Kanyon dives into a powerbomb, setting up the Diamond Cutter for the pin.
Rating: C. Not bad here but you could see Page having the whole thing mapped out. Kanyon continues to be entertaining in almost everything he does and should be doing something better than just fighting Page and Bigelow all the time. The same is true of Page. He could be fighting for the US Title (along with a few other people) but he’s just kind of here, going from match to match and never advancing.
Luger and Big T. talk backstage.
The NWO watches from their locker room.
Total Package/Sid Vicious vs. Booker T./Big T.
Oh this could be bad. Mr. T.’s offspring get in an argument to start and the fans chant for Ahmed. Eventually it’s Big T. vs. Sid to start and T. wants a test of strength. Sid asks the audience if they want to see it, complete with the hand to the ear, but Big backs down. It’s off to Booker as we’ve somehow eaten up two minutes of the match with no contact yet. Booker and Sid lock up, let go, and it’s off to Luger.
Amazingly enough it’s Luger with the first real contact of the match as he runs Booker over with a shoulder, only to have Booker knock him out to the floor. Nash is here to watch as Luger chokes Booker in the corner. We take a break and come back with Sid holding Booker in a chinlock. It’s off to Luger who eats the running forearm, only to have Big T. slapjack him from the apron. Now, down 2-1, Big T. comes in and gets chokeslammed, leaving Luger to Rack the unconscious Booker for the submission.
Rating: D-. So to clarify, not only is Big T. fat and out of shape, but he’s very stupid. Let’s just get to the stupid angle that’s coming with Harlem Heat so we can get Booker out of this and on to ANYTHING else because yet another Harlem Heat storyline can only go so far and we passed that about a month ago.
Overall Rating: D+. This is an interesting look at how the new regime is going to go. First and foremost, the matches are getting more time. Several of these had 4-5 minutes, which is enough time to get the point across. I’d still like to cut out a match or two and extend the matches they already have, but at least they’re letting the wrestlers tell a story and not have to fly through five plot points while trying to fit in some moves in between.
However, there’s another side to the new bosses. WCW is so desperate for a new star but they’re hanging on to the old guard as tight as they can. It should be all hands on deck to make someone into a star but instead we’re getting Sid and Luger in the main events with Booker T. doing the job to advance the Harlem Heat feud.
Since they announced the title match for Monday, I’ve been trying to figure out who they could have put in that spot instead of Sid and there really aren’t a lot of options. Assuming he’s healthy, there’s always Sting, but is that really where you want to go again, especially with Hogan out there somewhere? There’s Vampiro, but my goodness that would be a jump. Kidman is a US Title level guy at best. That really just leaves Booker T., who is last seen out cold and being put in the Torture Rack because Luger and Sid are a team for no apparent reason.
So we’re waiting to see if Sid is the guy that can carry the promotion? I’m assuming we’ll get Sting and Hogan back soon enough, meaning it really is going to become even more of a good old boys network around here. I know the idea is to find someone steady, but that should be done while also building for the future, which WCW has never managed to do. Everyone young has been ground down to nothing for the sake of pushing old acts for a quick score. Above all else, that might be the biggest thing that lead to their downfall. It’s really hard to care when the quality is going down and the champions get older every week.
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We’re up to another show here and I’m not the most interested. However, this is more like the TLC and Extreme Rules shows: if you just let the gimmicks carry the show, everything should fall into place (and off the top of the ladders). Hopefully we get a cash in on the night of the show so we don’t have to have the briefcase carried around all year. Let’s get to it.
On the pre-show, I’ll go with Barrett over Truth. I know Truth has been doing some funny stuff lately, but I have to have faith in the wrestling world. I know they’ll likely job Barrett again and chuckle at the idea that people believed in him for the dozenth time, but I have to believe that it can happen just one time. I mean…..please?
Now for the matches that people actually care about, that might actually get more than five minutes, and won’t involve a bag of rubber spiders.
I’ll take Cena to win over Owens, but not by pin or submission. They seem to be taking care of Owens and the other rookies, so hopefully they just have him walk out or get disqualified this time. There’s nowhere near enough heat for this rematch to take place so soon and it’s really holding things back. This should have been at Summerslam to build up Owens even more and take away some of the awesome memories of the first match. Still though, this should be fun and something very interesting depending on the ending.
As weak as it is, I’ll take Reigns for the Money in the Bank briefcase. It’s such a simple idea that you would think they might mix things up, but there’s really no reason to have anyone but Reigns take it down. Kingston and New Day would be awesome for a moment before you remember they’re the Tag Team Champions. Neville isn’t ready. Orton doesn’t need it. Ziggler, Sheamus and Kane are Ziggler, Sheamus and Kane. Reigns is tied in and the logical move, which is why it probably doesn’t happen if WWE tries to get cute. I’ll go safe here though and hope that Reigns cashes in very soon.
I’ve already gone into the World Title scene but I think Rollins retains and brags about it tomorrow night on Raw, only to have Brock come back as the biggest monster face in the history of monster faces to chase the belt. I know a lot of people have been wanting to see Ambrose win the title and that’s still a possibility, but the Lesnar factor changes so many things.
You combine that with the possibilities of something interesting happening with a Shield reunion and there’s almost no way of telling where this goes. Well I mean between the two people who are possible winners so it’s really 50/50, but saying there’s no way of telling sounds better, despite it not really being that hard to tell. I’ll take Rollins retaining and Ambrose turning heel as a result, because why listen to the crowd cheering for someone they love when you can turn Reigns heel and let him build himself up for a year or so down the line.
New Day retains the belts. I’ve been chuckling at the Prime Time Players and Darren is actually showing some potential, but I don’t see them being the team to beat New Day for the titles. New Day is getting even stronger as kind of associates of the Authority, which is even further of a miracle than they were expecting.
Ryback keeps the Intercontinental Title. As easy as a Big Show joke would be here, let Ryback retain and build himself up a bit more with a Shell Shock on the giant. You remember that move. They did it on Raw because why save it for the pay per view when you can show 18 replays of it on Raw. Odds are Ryback moves on to feud with Miz after this, or maybe back to Wyatt, who beat him so recently.
Oh and Nikki retains as the march to 295 continues, meaning she can pass AJ Lee as the longest reigning Divas Champion ever so WWE can put her in montages with Trish and Lita, because it’s totally the same thing.
This is a show that is going to be based entirely on the strength of the ladder matches and little more. Cena vs. Owens is a big match, but it’s going to be dealing with the big expectations that the previous match built up. Other than that though, the Money in the Bank ladder match should be a big fun mess and Ambrose vs. Rollins could be great. The interesting thing is going to come the following night though as an angry Lesnar is going to be back to go a Rollins hunting.
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It gets harder and harder to defend this company every single day. I get the idea of wanting to beef up the TV shows, but what in the world is headlining this pay per view that is going to make people want to drop $40 to see it? Also, I’d assume that part of the idea is not to spoil a World Title match taking place after the tapings, so the solution is to air it during the tapings? This pay per view is going to be Bound For Glory all over again, making it a very, very long sit.
Some Quick Fantasy Booking
About WWE’s main event scene. WWE is in a weird place this weekend, and unfortunately it looks like it’s ending with another Ambrose loss on pay per view. Let’s take a quick look at this.
Here’s how I see it going down/what I want to see, and no this isn’t meant to be some grand plan that is some huge insight/shocking prediction.
My guess is Rollins, all by himself, cheats to win on Sunday and keeps the title. The following night on Raw, Rollins is bragging about doing it all on his own……“OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD!” “THE BEAST IS BACK MAGGLE!” This leads to Brock vs. Rollins at Battleground and, with Rollins in trouble,
SIERRA
HOTEL
INDIA
ECHO
LIMA
DELTA
Does it make sense? Not really. Is it likely to happen? Eh possibly as there have been far dumber reunions before. This sets up Lesnar doing something at Summerslam and then Shield fighting in the triple threat for the title. I firmly believe the first part is happening but the Battleground ending is much more fantasy booking.
The problem here is they’ve set up Lesnar vs. Rollins at some point and much like Ryback in 2012, there’s no place for Ambrose at the top of the card. Well not on his own at least as they could put him back together with Shield. Either that or they’ll have Ambrose turn on Reigns because it’s as stupid of an idea as they could have and do Reigns vs. Ambrose at Summerslam and do Lesnar vs. Rollins for the title again there, assuming it’s at Battleground.
Either way, Ambrose isn’t getting the title, or at least isn’t going to keep it very long.