Thunder
Date: February 12, 1998
Location: Myriad Convention Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Lee Marshall, Bobby Heenan

We’re closing in on SuperBrawl and things are getting very interesting in WCW. Hogan and the NWO have basically thrown Savage out but Randy still wants to fight. The NWO also got a rare jump on Sting with the help of a net dropping from the ceiling. As for tonight Ric Flair is back and he’s facing one of his most famous rivals in Lex Luger. Let’s get to it.

Here are Hogan and Bischoff to open the show. Bischoff says it’s time to get serious because things are getting out of control. The NWO is declaring war on anyone associated with WCW. They’re going to start in alphabetical order and go from Anyone associated with WCW, from Ted Turner to the guys to mow the lawn at Turner headquarters. Hogan says even the fans are fair game, but let’s get to the B’s (were any A’s mentioned?). The number one B on Hogan’s list is Bret Hart, who is to blame for Hogan not holding the belt. He doesn’t know where, but Hogan is going to beat up Bret Hart somewhere.

On a lighter note, Hogan wants to talk to Randy Savage face to face right now. Macho comes out and Hogan says he knows when he’s right but he’s wrong in this whole thing. It’s time to look Savage eye to eye and let everyone know that an apology is necessary. Before we get to that though, this coming Monday it’s going to be Hogan/Savage vs. Luger/Sting. Hogan says Savage should thank Bischoff for the match but now it’s time for the apology. However it’s Savage who needs to apologize and that’s exactly what he does, right before decking Hogan and Bischoff with right hands.

The announcers are thrilled.

We talk about WCW Motorsports for a few moments.

Kidman vs. Prince Iaukea

Louie Spicolli has chased Lee Marshall off commentary. Kidman and Lodi taunt Iaukea into a chase, allowing Kidman to get in a shot as they get back inside. The Prince snapmares Kidman to the floor as Louie talks about eating pizza with Larry Zbyszko. Kidman dropkicks Iaukea into the apron but runs into a foot in the corner back inside. We cut to the back to see Raven sending Riggs off to get Van Hammer. Mortis comes up to Raven, apparently wanting to join the Flock. Raven asks why Mortis dresses in these clown costumes and says if he wants to be in the Flock, Mortis has to be himself. Oh and beat DDP as well.

Back in the ring Iaukea breaks out of a chinlock but gets taken down by a jawbreaker. A superkick doesn’t drop Kidman so Prince fires off some chops. Kidman clotheslines him down and goes up but dives into a belly to belly suplex for two. A guillotine legdrop misses and Kidman hits a quick Shooting Star Press for the pin.

Rating: D+. Based on what we saw this wasn’t much. Kidman was talented but he needed someone better than Prince Iaukea to have a good match. The Raven thing stopped the match in its tracks but that was a common idea for WCW: make it look like anything could happen at anytime. There is something to be said about that idea instead of having segments happen right after a match ends.

Meng vs. Hugh Morrus

Hugh jumps Meng before the bell and pounds on him in the corner but a splash has no effect. Meng comes back with chops to the chest and punches to the ribs followed by some choking on the ropes. A top rope splash gets two for Meng as Louie asks if Heenan used to manage him which shocks the Brain. Morrus comes back with a spinwheel kick and loads up No Laughing Matter, but Jimmy Hart rolls Meng out of the way. Tony informs us that we’ll have the Steiners vs. Outsiders again at SuperBrawl along with Louie vs. Zbyszko. Meng kicks Morrus in the face and the Deathgrip ends this pretty quickly.

Post match Barbarian comes down to break up the hold but gets put in the Deathgrip as well.

US Title: Diamond Dallas Page vs. Mortis

Vandenberg shouts that he owns Mortis on the way to the ring. Mortis gets caught in a quick tilt-a-whirl side slam but bails to the corner to avoid the Diamond Cutter. Page misses a charge into the post and Mortis takes over, allowing Vandenberg to choke in the corner. The champ pops up and pounds away on Mortis, only to get kicked in the face and hits with a neckbreaker out of the corner for two. We hit the chinlock as Tony announces Page vs. Benoit II at SuperBrawl. Page suplexes his way to freedom and hits a discus lariat followed by a running Diamond Cutter to retain.

Rating: C-. Just a simple title defense here with Page hitting another version of the Diamond Cutter to fire up the crowd. Mortis’ offense continues to change almost on a weekly basis with new moves coming out all the time. I miss midcard champions having matches against some random opponent like this. It doesn’t hurt Mortis to lose because he’s in over his head, so why not do matches like this more often?

Post match the Flock minus Raven comes out and carries Mortis from the ring ala Riggs when he joined the team. Raven appears at the entrance and DDTs Mortis on the ramp.

We recap British Bulldog vs. Steve McMichael. I keep forgetting this feud is happening.

Steve McMichael vs. Jim Neidhart

Neidhart shoulder blocks him down to start and a forearm smash sends Mongo to the floor. Mongo is sent into the steps but comes back with a three point shoulder block inside to take over. McMichael goes to the floor and picks up the steps, but the Bulldog runs in for the save and the DQ win for Mongo.

After the break we get a video of them brawling through the commercial.

Chris Adams vs. Buff Bagwell

Adams hits two quick slams to start but walks into a backdrop so Buff can pose. They shove and slap each other a few times until Chris takes over with some clotheslines. Adams misses a charge and clotheslines himself on the ropes to give Bagwell control. Buff gets two off a neckbreaker but a splash hits knees. Adams makes a comeback with basic stuff followed by a terrible looking piledriver for two. Vincent gets superkicked down but the distraction lets Bagwell drill Adams from behind and finish him with the Blockbuster.

Rating: D. This really didn’t work. Adams was trying but the lack of chemistry crippled any chance they had. He was 43 years old at this point and long past his best days but he could still do basic stuff well enough. Bagwell never was much in the ring but the Blockbuster looked as good as ever.

Video on Juventud Guerrera and how important his mask is to him.

Cruiserweight Title: Chris Jericho vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Jericho has to be threatened with a DQ to take the belt off. Chavo chops him down but Jericho hits a running forearm to knock Chavo outside. A suplex back in allows Jericho to pose for the crowd, only to be SHOCKED by the booing. Jericho hits the butterfly backbreaker for the arrogant cover, only to miss a charge in the corner a few seconds later. He jumps over Chavo in the corner but gets caught by a back elbow to the face. Chavo’s tornado DDT is easily countered into the Liontamer for the submission to retain Jericho’s title.

Jericho won’t let go of the hold so here’s Juvy for the save. Chris goes for the mask but Juvy knocks him to the floor, sending the champion running away.

British Bulldog vs. Sick Boy

What an odd pairing. Eric Bischoff kicks Lee Marshall out of commentary and wants to know who is behind the conspiracy against the NWO, namely because They Live (a Roddy Piper movie) is playing right after Thunder. Bulldog hits a powerslam (not the powerslam) sets up a delayed vertical suplex but Sick Boy hits a springboard back elbow to take over. Sick Boy pounds away and Bischoff storms off. We hit the chinlock as Tony says They Live as many times as he can. Bulldog avoids a charge in the corner and catches Sick Boy in the powerslam for the pin. This was a commercial for the movie, not the match.

Post match Mongo hits the ring to attack Bulldog again.

Chris Benoit vs. Raven

Raven’s Rules of course.  Raven jumps Benoit on the way to the ring and sends him head first into the steps. They head inside with a chair for the drop toehold but Raven is sent twice into the chair wedged between the top and middle rope. Benoit stomps a mudhole in the corner but Sick Boy pulls Raven out of the way, sending Chris into the chair. Benoit comes right back with rolling Germans but Kidman comes in for the save via a springboard…..right into the Crossface for a tap out, which is good for the submission win? I want to see a copy of Raven’s rules.

Rating: C. This was intense while it lasted but they needed more time to make the match work. The ending didn’t make a ton of sense but then again neither did the Flock in general. Raven didn’t wrestle often in WCW but when he did it was usually something good if not great.

The Flock comes in for the post match beatdown but DDP comes in through the crowd to make the save. He finally gets rid of Saturn to break up the Rings of Saturn. Benoit insists he didn’t need Page’s help but Page disagrees.

Glacier vs. Goldberg

Glacier’s entrance nearly takes as long as the match. Goldberg does a standing backflip to avoid a leg sweep, spear and Jackhammer make Goldberg 30something-0.

Ric Flair vs. Lex Luger

It’s almost strange for this to not be for the world title. Luger starts with a gorilla press and Flair begs off into the corner, only to come out with the poke to the eye. Lex shoves him across the ring and flexes before slamming Flair off the top rope. Flair rolls to the apron and snaps Luger’s throat across the top rope followed by a low blow. The chops have no effect on Luger so he comes back with a clothesline and a superplex to put Flair down. Luger loads up the Rack but the referee goes down, allowing Flair to hit a chop block to set up the Figure Four. Luger turns it over but Savage runs in for the DQ.

Rating: C. This was the abbreviated paint by numbers version of Luger vs. Flair, which still makes it more entertaining than most matches you’ll find. At this point these two could have a decent match just on muscle memory alone. Savage running in makes sense given how insane he’s been lately, plus it keeps either guy from having to job here.

Flair tries to save Luger but Hogan comes in to take Savage out. The NWO beats down everyone in sight but Sting runs in to clear the NWO out of the ring to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The show did a good job of setting up the PPV, but the focus was on the main event stuff instead of the midcard like Thunder has been focusing on so far. The Raven vs. Benoit vs. Page stuff is interesting and the matches should be very fun. There’s also the Cruiserweight Title stuff with Jericho being amazing at this point, so WCW continues to have a bright future. Good show here but nothing memorable.

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Smackdown
Date: July 5, 2013
Location: Landon Arena, Topeka, Kansas
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

We now know everyone in the MITB matches at the PPV so tonight is likely to be all about building towards the match, much like on Raw. Other than that we’re likely to get more between Ziggler and Del Rio after Dolph cost the champ a match against Cena. If we’re lucky we’ll even get more Daniel Bryan goodness. Let’s get to it.

The opening airs for the second week in a row. It’s better than the voiceover.

Here’s Punk to get us going. We get a clip of him getting annoyed at Curtis Axel for stealing the pin in their tag match on Raw. Punk says if he was Cena, he’d come out here and make a big speech about the 4^th of July and how awesome it is, but thankfully for the fans, his name is CM Punk. To him, the 4^th of July is about independence. A group of like minded guys got together and decided to not live by someone else’s rules. They were willing to die for what they believed in and that’s something Punk can get behind.

If Punk is given rules to follow, odds are he’s going to break them. When someone tells him to do something one way, odds are he’s going to run in the other direction. When he was told he was going to be the big thing after Wrestlemania, he walked away. When someone told him that his chances at winning another MITB match were really low, he decided to line them up and yell at them. He has two goals: get his hands on Brock Lesnar and become WWE Champion again.

Cue Alberto (Punk: “I wasn’t done.”) who says he was expecting more from Punk. Punk says he was expecting a cool car instead of just a guy in a cheap suit. Del Rio brags about being world champion and says this is his show. Alberto makes fun of Americans for stuffing themselves with hamburgers and hot dogs on Independence Day and then spending the rest of the year getting fatter and fatter. Then they come to Smackdown and cheer for Dolph Ziggler while chanting USA.

Punk wants to know why Del Rio has changed his tune so quickly. Just a few weeks ago Del Rio was bragging about being born in Mexico and made in the USA, but then everyone saw through him. Del Rio says Punk is a little chihuahua and someone like the world heavyweight champion needs to teach him some manners. Punk: “That just makes you the #1 contender to my title: Best in the world.” Nice line. Del Rio orders Punk out of his ring right now but remember Punk doesn’t like being told what to do. Teddy, main event made, moving on. This was a solid opening segment but unfortunately it results in a Del Rio main event.

Post break Heyman asks Punk if he can get the match canceled because Punk has nothing to gain. Punk says he wants to fight so Heyman offers to be in Punk’s corner at MITB. Punk declines again and Heyman looks annoyed.

Usos vs. Rhodes Scholars

The Scholars brag about winning MITB in nine days but the fans don’t seem to buy it. Cody starts with Jimmy but ramming the Samoan’s head into the buckle has no effect. I miss racial stereotypes in wrestling. Cody dropkicks Jimmy down and brings in Sandow to stomp away for a few seconds. The Russian legsweep sets up the Wind-Up Elbow for two before it’s back to Rhodes. Things quickly break down and both Scholars get superkicked, setting up a double Superfly Splash for the pin on Sandow at 2:17.

Post match the Shield pops up on screen and says the loss on Raw isn’t derailing their mission of justice. At Money in the Bank, the Usos are going to need more than luck. Ambrose says that Monday was Christian’s one chance out of 100 to get lucky. Prepare to live in a world where Dean Ambrose is waiting in the shadows with a Money in the Bank briefcase.

Alicia Fox vs. Kaitlyn

Fox drives Kaitlyn into the corner to start and gets two off a quick suplex. We hit the chinlock thirty seconds into the match before Alicia slams Kaitlyn head first into the mat. Back to the chinlock but Kaitlyn fights up….and here’s AJ to skip around the ring. Kaitlyn fights the urge to stare at AJ for a bit but finally knocks her off the apron, allowing Alicia to hit the most devastating move in all of wrestling: the ROLLUP OF DISTRACTION, for the pin at 2:45.

Post match the Bellas stop AJ and say that she needs to watch out because they’ll be taking the Divas Title soon. Langston runs them off but AJ is scared of Kaitlyn coming to get her. It isn’t that bad though because Kaitlyn is less aerodynamic because of those big man arms. Langston wants to know what AJ is going to do for Dolph’s match later but she’ll just text him and it’ll be all cool.

We recap the events between Bryan, Kane and Orton in their match on Monday.

Christian says that he’s beaten Orton before and he can do it again tonight. Orton says he’s beaten Christian before and he’ll do it again tonight in one more match.

Wyatt Family promo.

Randy Orton vs. Christian

Feeling out process to start with Orton taking Chrsitian down with a shoulder. A clothesline gets two for Randy but Christian sends him throat first into the middle rope. Christian tries the uppercut from the floor but Orton ducks away and tries the Elevated DDT, only to have Christian counter with a backdrop to the floor. We take a break and come back with Orton getting up from a missed knee drop but coming back with the Thesz Press.

Christian snaps Orton’s throat across the top rope and gets two off the high cross before putting on a chinlock. Randy escapes and they slug it out again with Orton dropkicking Christian down. He tries the powerslam but Christian puts on the brakes to send Orton down. Instead Randy drives down punches in the corner and gets two off the falling powerbomb (think the Big Ending but with Christian facing up).

Christian avoids an RKO out of the corner but gets caught in a rolling cradle for two. Both finishers are countered and Christian puts Orton down with a belly to back suplex. The spear gets two but the Killswitch is countered into the Elevated DDT but Christian counters the RKO yet again. Christian jumps over Orton but walks into the RKO for the pin at 9:48 shown of 12:48.

Rating: B-. I loved the idea of both guys knowing each other so well that they can counter all the signature stuff. It worked two years ago in their big feud and it still works very well here. Both guys looked good out there, but why put Orton over Christian when the Canadian is already an underdog in the ladder match?

Teddy Long tells Heyman to do commentary on the main event tonight.

We get a clip from the App with Ziggler telling AJ to see the big picture: forget Kaitlyn and become a power couple.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Drew McIntyre

Before the match Ziggler talks about how fast the last few months have gone. He won the world title from Alberto Del Rio and then Del Rio was trying as hard as he could to make people like him. Ziggler may be cocky, but he’s never claimed to be something he’s not. At MITB, he’s taking back his world title.

Dolph fires off right hands in the corner but a hurricanrana attempt is countered into a buckle bomb for two. Drew stomps him in the corner and gets two off a snap suplex. A chinlock is quickly broken so Drew puts him down with a pair of backbreakers. Ziggler comes back with the corner splash and a dropkick before countering a tilt-a-whirl into the Zig Zag for the pin at 3:11.

Rating: D+. There isn’t much you can get out of a three minute match, but it’s nice to see the jobbers being used like they’re supposed to be. Ziggler gets an easy win and the jobbers don’t lose anything as a result. There wasn’t much to see here but it makes sense given the post match stuff from Raw.

Ziggler bails to avoid a three on one attack. He charges back in, gets in a few shots and then bails again to mess with the Band.

We get the career retrospective on Mark Henry from Raw.

Fandango vs. Justin Gabriel

Fandango quickly takes him down and dances a bit, only to have Gabriel kick his head off. Justin sends him face first into the apron but charges into a knee to the face. The top rope legdrop is good for the pin on Justin at 1:36.

We The People talk about how many Americans don’t appreciate the Fourth of July.

Alberto Del Rio vs. CM Punk

Heyman is on commentary. They take turns shoving each other into the corner with Punk snapmaring him down and hitting a dropkick to the back of Alberto’s head. Del Rio fires off right hands in the corner but misses a charge to put him down. Alberto rolls to the floor to avoid the Macho Elbow and we take a break. Back with Del Rio hitting a running kick to the arm in the corner before putting on an armbar. The low superkick gets two on Punk as Heyman talks about Cole being a Paul Heyman guy back in the day.

The armbar is countered into a GTS attempt but Del Rio escapes into the Codebreaker to the arm for two. A kick to the head gets two more and it’s back to the armbar. Del Rio may be boring but his psychology is sound. If your finishing move is an arm hold, why focus on anything but softening up the arm? Punk slams him down and goes up top but Alberto hits a nasty running enziguri for two.

Punk comes back with some kicks and clotheslines but charges into a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. A baseball slide sends him to the floor and Del Rio whips him shoulder first into the barricade. Alberto loads up the announce table and punches Heyman down, sending Punk into a rage. It’s a double countout at 7:40 shown of 10:40. Lillian calls it a no contest by way of a double countout. Are we not allowed to say draw anymore?

Rating: D+. This was dull stuff with a long stretch of the match being spent in the same armbar. Del Rio’s psychology may be sound, but man alive can his matches be dull a lot of the time. The ending makes sense as you want to keep both guys looking strong and Del Rio can’t lose two matches in a week.

Del Rio takes the GTS and Punk checks on Heyman to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This show did a good job of building up the PPV matches but it wasn’t great on its own. The problem with the episode was they spent a lot of time focusing on the All-Star ladder match which left the Smackdown ladder match in the cold. It’s not all that strong on its own and needs all the build it can get, but the show’s main event and featured match were about the other ladder match. Not a bad show this week but it needed better prioritizing.

Results

Usos b. Rhodes Scholars – Double Superfly Splash to Sandow

Alicia Fox b. Kaitlyn – Rollup

Randy Orton b. Christian – RKO

Dolph Ziggler b. Drew McIntyre – Zig Zag

Fandango b. Justin Gabriel – Top rope legdrop

CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio went to a double countout

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my book on the History of Starrcade From Amazon for just $4 at:

NXT
Date: July 5, 2011
Location: Tucson Arena, Tucson, Arizona
Commentators: Todd Grisham, William Regal

We’re at episode 18 here and I’m truly starting to wonder something. I’ll be at the Smackdown/NXT tapings on August 2 and I’m honestly not sure if the new season will have started yet. This is already the longest season of the show so far and now all of a sudden we have three finalists instead of two. This could go on for awhile. Let’s get to it.

We recap the eliminations this season and the return of Derrick Bateman and his pro Daniel Bryan from last week. I still don’t get how this is fair or really needed.

Striker and Maryse bring out the rookies and pros. We go over the Redemption Points with Bateman of course in third place. Time for the Talk the Talk Challenge with the topic of why should you win. Young talks about how unfair it is to put Bateman back in after Young has spent 17 weeks working to get here and now without a pro.

Titus says he’s dominated the competition all over and actually makes it rain redemption points. That was kind of funny. Bateman says O’Neil said his football team is better than the local one. Bateman says he and Bryan are the best things to happen to the internet since kitten videos. He gets booed loudly and Titus wins, further proving that these Redemption Points are totally pointless.

We get a quick recap of Yoshi freaking over the broken action figure last week. Can’t say they’re repeating stuff with that one.

Yoshi Tatsu vs. Tyson Kidd

Well it was great last week so I can’t complain on a rematch. Grisham says it was five stars. The show is on the internet so that fits perfectly. Yoshi fires off some kicks (actually called Kawada kicks by Regal) and we go to the floor for a bit. Back inside Tyson hammers him down in the corner but can’t get a rollup. They head to the apron and Kidd blocks a suplex.

Kiss manages to kick him off the apron back first into the post. We take a break to talk about That’s What I Am which really shouldn’t stun me. Back with Kidd working on the back until Tatsu reverses a suplex into a cross body for two. Kidd hits a suplex and locks on a double chickenwing on the mat. Yoshi fights up and chops away including a kick to put Kidd down.

Tatsu goes up so Kidd tries the Kurt Angle run up for a (vertical in this case) suplex but gets dropped. Spinwheel kick catches Kidd in the hands so badly that Regal has to say it didn’t really hit. That gets two and Kidd dropkicks the shin. That sets up a Moss Covered Three Handled Family Credenza for the pin at 9:09. For those of you unfamiliar with the general insanity of Perry Saturn, it’s a fisherman’s suplex but instead of bridging back you spin the guy around like a neckbreaker.

Rating: C+. Well it wasn’t bad but to say the other match was better is a huge understatement. Too much resting going on here and nowhere near enough near falls to make this one work. Not bad, but given what they did last week it was going to be pretty hard to top it here. Still good though.

Profile on Derrick Bateman, who really shouldn’t have been eliminated last season, especially not while Johnny “so bland that white paint on growing grass calls you bland” Curtis was around.

Horny is still trying to give Maryse flowers. They happen to be dead and include Twizzlers and banana peels. She says that should get him a kiss but she hits him with the flowers instead. Titus can’t console him.

Titus O’Neil/Darren Young vs. Daniel Bryan/Derrick Bateman

According to Todd, Bateman was supposed to be part of this season but tore his MCL. Bateman and Young start us off with Bateman sending him to the floor. Off to Bryan for a little Nexus on Nexus violence. DB and DB work on Young’s arm but he’s able to fight off Bateman and bring in Titus.

That doesn’t last long and neither guy really gets anything going. Back to Young for a chinlock. Grisham says Regal could make a burning orphanage sound funny. When I woke up today, I didn’t think I’d hear that line. Titus slams Bateman down as the beating continues.

Young doesn’t do as well, allowing the hot tag to Bryan. He hits a running dropkick in the corner to Young, followed by a suplex and swan dive headbutt. Bryan backflips out of a suplex and staggers into the corner, tagging Bateman which I’m not sure was intentional. Bryan takes out O’Neil and Bateman grabs a headlock and drives Young’s head into the mat like a Skull Crushing Finale for the pin at 6:22.

Rating: C. Just a tag match here and not a very interesting one at all. The Bateman finisher was pretty weak an dit’s pretty clear that they’re going to have Bateman vs. O’Neil in the final two, assuming there is a final two. Nothing special here, but then again Bateman never was anything special in the ring.

The last 13 minutes of the show are used to completely reair the Vince/Cena closing segment from last night, which was good but I don’t want to see it all over again just 24 hours later.

Overall Rating: D+. Didn’t like this one at all as the whole show felt like filler. No mention of another elimination so based on the track record of this show so far, that means we’ll be here at least two more weeks. I was only half kidding earlier when I mentioned August 2 but it’s looking more and more possible. Didn’t like this as both matches were pretty bland and ¼ of the show is a segment from Raw. Nothing to see here at all.

Results

Titus O’Neil won the Talk the Talk Challenge

Tyson Kidd b. Yoshi Tatsu – Fisherman’s neckbreaker

Derrick Bateman/Daniel Bryan b. Darren Young/Titus O’Neil – Headlock into a facejam to Young

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my book on the History of Starrcade from Amazon for just $4 at:

ECW on Sci-Fi
Date: November 21, 2006
Location: Nassau Coliseum, New York City, New York
Attendance: 10,500
Commentators: Joey Styles, Taz

I’ve really got to stop these five month breaks between reviewing shows. The main story here is we’re a week from Survivor Series and two weeks from December to Dismember. Yeah there was a week between PPVs and WWE was still surprised when the ECW show bombed. Tonight we finalize some plans for the Extreme Elimination Chamber match with RVD defending his spot against Hardcore Holly. Let’s get to it.

We open with Heyman narrating a video on Lashley jumping Hardcore Holly to take the last spot in the Extreme Elimination Chamber and taking Big Show down.

In a special treat tonight, the Hardy Boys will reunite.

Matt Striker has his classroom set up in the ring and says that we don’t have to wait for December to Dismember to see destruction. He compares his time as a teacher to Lashley’s tour of duty in the military but gets cut off by his opponent.

Bobby Lashley vs. Matt Striker

Lashley clears the classroom stuff out of the ring, including launching a DESK over his head. I’m talking about one of the big desks, not a school desk. Striker finally comes into the ring and is tossed around like a doll. A delayed vertical suplex sets up a spear and the Dominator ends Striker quick.

We get a clip of Jeff retaining the IC Title over Johnny Nitro in a ladder match last night.

Hardy Boys vs. Full Blooded Italians

Matt starts with Guido and cranks on the arm. It’s quickly off to the banged up Jeff to stay on the arm. The Hardys take turns cranking on the Italian’s limb before dropping Guido with a double back elbow. Tony Mamaluke comes in, only to walk into the Spin Cycle to put him down as well. Trinity, the Italians’ barely clothed manager, trips Jeff up to put him in trouble for the first time.

Mamaluke and Guido drop a double elbow on Jeff for two and it’s the Italians’ turn for some double teaming. Jeff finally fights up and hits a double dropkick to set up the hot tag to Matt. House is cleaned and the middle rope legdrop gets two on Guido. The Side Effect to Mamaluke sets up a middle rope powerbomb/neckbreaker combo to kill him dead. Matt lays Mamaluke out with the Twist and the Swanton is good for the pin.

Rating: C. Just a glorified squash here but there were a few dollars to be made off a Hardys reunion run so I can’t blame them for taking a shot here. The team still looked good together and were much more dangerous given their singles success around this time. The Mamalukes could have been any two guys and had the same result.

Heyman tells Van Dam that if he loses to Holly tonight, Holly gets his Chamber spot.

CM Punk vs. Kevin Thorn

Punk tries a go behind but Thorn pounds him down with ease instead. CM comes back with some kicks to the ribs, only to be dropped throat first on the top rope for his efforts. A backbreaker gets two for Thorn and it’s off to an early chinlock. Thorn transitions to a Boston crab as Kelly Kelly comes out to cheer Punk on. The cheering works as Punk slips through his legs and hooks the Anaconda Vice for the quick submission.

Post match Kelly celebrates with Punk but Ariel comes in for a catfight. Punk makes the save and the good people stand tall. Mike Knox stares them down from the ramp.

Here are Big Show and Heyman with something to say. Show talks about how dangerous the Chamber is going to be while using words like barbaric and brutality. He’s up against five challengers in the match but he likes his odds. No one from Undertaker to Flair to Batista has been able to beat him….and here’s Lashley. Bobby is ready to go but Show walks away, only to slug Lashley down. He loads up the WMD but Lashley beats him to the punch and sends him to the floor. Lashley wants to fight but Heyman holds him back.

Video on the EVILS of the Chamber.

Rob Van Dam vs. Hardcore Holly

This is extreme rules and the winner goes to the Chamber. Before the match, Test fires Holly up in the back in a pointless moment. Were they running 15 seconds short or something? They slug it out to start with Rob taking over and kicking Holly in the head. Rolling Thunder gets two on Holly and Van Dam takes him to the floor for the spin kick to the back. We take a break and come back with Rob catapulting Holly into the bottom rope and hitting a spinwheel kick in the corner.

Rob stalks Holly but gets launched head first into a chair wedged between the ropes during the break. Holly stomps the chair onto Rob’s face for two and a hot shot onto the chair gets the same. Off to a chinlock for a bit but Van Dam comes back with a Stunner over the top rope to put Holly down. Van Dam tries to bring in another chair but Holly dropkicks him right back to the floor. Back in again and Hardcore puts the chair over Rob’s face for a guillotine legdrop, crushing Van Dam’s face.

Holly can’t follow up due to banging his leg on the chair and both guys are down. It’s Holly up first and stealing the timekeeper’s belt to give Rob a whooping. Van Dam knocks it out of his hands and kicks Holly in the face to get himself a breather. They slug it out with Rob taking over before superkicking Holly down.

A monkey flip sets up a top rope kick to the chest followed by the skateboard chair shot to the face. Rolling Thunder onto the chair gets two but Holly pelts the chair at Van Dam’s head to put him back down. Holly gets crotched on the top and superplexed down onto the chair, followed by the Five Star onto the chair for the pin.

Rating: C+. This started slow but got better in the end. As usual in ECW, the heels being very weak make these matches hard to get into. I mean, I’m supposed to believe Hardcore Holly is going to beat Rob Van Dam? Anyway, Holly was trying and the weapon shots weren’t bad, but the guys in the ring made it too hard to buy into.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t a bad show and they’re doing a good job of setting up the Chamber. Sabu and Test were barely here at all and RVD and Punk have their own stories going on instead of the Chamber, but Lashley is a monster who could hang with Big Show. By this point it’s clear that this is the WWE version of ECW instead of the original and thank goodness for that.

Here’s Survivor Series if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2012/11/12/survivor-series-count-up-2012-redo-2006-man-this-year-sucked/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my book on the History of Starrcade from Amazon for just $4 at:

NXT
Date: July 3, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tony Dawson, William Regal

It’s another big week on NXT as the Wyatt Family now has William Regal to deal with in addition to Graves and Ohno. On the singles side we have Leo Kruger looking like the first challenger for Bo Dallas, which is an odd choice as Dallas seems to be ready for a heel turn but he’s facing a heel in Leo. Let’s get to it.

Here’s Bo Dallas in the back for an interview. Renee asks him about Leo Kruger coming out and holding up the title after Dallas’ match last week. Dallas says the Bo-lievers (Renee: “Bo-lievers?” Dallas: “Yes the Bo-lievers.”) will be behind him against anyone. He brags about meeting Bret Hart at Wrestlemania and having a match at Wrestlemania Axxess, which he earned just like when he beat Big E. Langston.

Antonio Cesaro comes in and says Dallas hasn’t earned anything. Tonight he’ll take Dallas’ title in the name of We The People. Dallas introduces Cesaro to Renee, calling him the most insignificant US Champion in WWE history. Dallas was acting much more heelish here and it helped him a lot.

NXT Women’s Title Tournament Semi-Finals: Alicia Fox vs. Paige

Fox takes it to the mat in a headscissors with her long legs but Paige counters into a headlock. Fox pulls her down by the hair and immediately bails to the floor. Back in and Paige fires off rapid fire elbows in the corner but Fox sweeps her legs out and gets two off a northern lights suplex. Off to a chinlock with a knee in Paige’s back but she escapes with a jawbreaker. Paige throws her around by the hair and hits a knee to the face, only to walk into a dropkick for two. Not that it matters though as Paige kicks her in the ribs and hits the Paige Turner to send her to the finals at 4:44.

Rating: C-. This was much better for Paige than the match against Snuka a few weeks back as Paige looked competitive against a former Divas Champion. Fox is good in a role like this as she’s been around for awhile and is a name in the division (granted not a huge one) so a win like this makes Paige look better. You can only dominate the other NXT girls for so long before it stops meaning anything.

Andy Baker vs. Conor O’Brien

O’Brien now has Rick Victor with him as Kenneth Cameron’s replacement. Conor runs Baker over and shouts YOU’RE DEAD. Baker tries to fight back with some shots to the ribs but a flapjack and a legdrop from O’Brien are enough for the pin at 1:00.

Kassius Ohno was injured by the Wyatt Family last week and can’t compete for the tag titles. Corey Graves and Adrian Neville ask William Regal to join them.

Scott Dawson vs. Xavier Woods

The fans chant for Woods but Dawson kicks him in the ribs to take over. Woods comes back with a quick dropkick for a one count and it’s off to an armbar on Dawson. Scott backdrops him over the top, sending Woods face first into the apron. The fans are all over Dawson as he elbows Xavier in the face and drops a leg for two. We hit the chinlock for a few seconds but Woods fights up, hits the Honor Roll (front flip clothesline) and Lost in the Woods is good for the pin at 4:11.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t much to see but I’m glad Dawson isn’t on a winning streak anymore. Woods continues to be so high energy that it’s hard not to notice him. His antics are funny enough and having a nostalgia character is a good way to get your foot in the door. The match didn’t have long enough to go anywhere but it was hard hitting and energetic enough to not suck.

Bray Wyatt talks about people judging him for the way he looks. He’s a wolf and sheep’s clothing and if you knew what was behind his eyes, you would know why people are scared of him.

Enzo Amore vs. Mason Ryan

Enzo continues to be incredibly annoying and therefore a great new heel. He has 7’0 Colin Cassady with him…..and the match is over in 12 seconds with a single right hand from Ryan. Best part of the match is a line from Regal: “Is Amore the love child of DDP?”

Amore wants Ryan to fight Cassady RIGHT NOW.

Mason Ryan vs. Colin Cassady

Ryan throws him around and ends Cassady in 33 seconds with a cobra clutch slam.

NXT Title: Bo Dallas vs. Antonio Cesaro

The fans don’t care for Cesaro but they can’t stand Dallas. Cesaro is even cheered a bit during the big match intros. There’s a WE THE PEOPLE chant as Cesaro and Dallas feel each other out. Dawson: “What does it mean if Cesaro can beat Dallas tonight?” Regal: “That he’ll be the champion.” Cesaro cranks on the arm and the fans are have a “Let’s go Bo” and “No more Bo” dueling chant going between the women and men.

A shoulder block gets two for Cesaro as Dawson has to explain who Tim Tebow is to Regal. Cesaro sends Dallas to the floor as we take a break. Back with Cesaro holding a chinlock as Leo Kruger is standing on the ramp. A kick to the back keeps Dallas down and the fans ask Cesaro to do it again. He loads the kick up but drops down into another chinlock to tease the people.

Dallas fights up again and pounds away in the corner before getting two off a bulldog. Cesaro’s slam is countered into a reverse DDT for two more but the corner climbing bulldog is blocked. Cesaro puts him on the top for a gutwrench superplex for a very close two. A middle rope knee drop gets two on the champion and it’s off to the swinging chinlock.

Dallas rolls the chinlock over into a cradle for two but Cesaro comes back with a fallaway slam for two more. Cesaro goes up top but Dallas runs the corner for a butterfly superplex to put both guys down again. Antonio is sent into Kruger to knock Leo off the apron, allowing Dallas to hit the belly to belly to retain at 10:15 shown of 12:45.

Rating: C+. Very interesting crowd reactions aside, this match really took off in the last three minutes or so. Kruger interfering sets up some interesting dynamics down the line and gives Dallas an extra challenger to face. They’ll need to move forward with that heel turn soon, because the fans were cheering for the protege of a white supremacist over the young face champion.

Post match Kruger lays out Dallas but Cesaro knocks Kruger to the floor. Cesaro pounds on Dallas until Kruger gets back in for a staredown. They double team Dallas until Sami Zayn comes in for the save to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show had a lot of filler, but the main event was solid and it sets up a very interesting four way feud for the title. Zayn is fitting right into this show and WWE sending big names down to Florida can only help things out. This was a good sign for the future and was an entertaining hour of wrestling.

Results

Paige b. Alicia Fox – Paige Turner

Conor O’Brien b. Andy Baker – Legdrop

Xavier Woods b. Scott Dawson – Lost in the Woods

Mason Ryan b. Enzo Amore – Right Hand

Mason Ryan b. Colin Cassady – Cobra Clutch

Bo Dallas b. Antonio Cesaro – Belly to belly suplex

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews,  pick up my book on the History of Starrcade from Amazon for just $4 at:

Impact Wrestling
Date: July 4, 2013
Location: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Taz

We’re in Sin City tonight for a taped Independence Day show. The main story is Austin Aries stole the X Division Title last week and as of this moment gets to challenge Bully Ray two weeks from tonight at Destination X. Other than that we’ll have a lot more buildup towards Bound For Glory in the BFG Series as points continue to be accumulated. Let’s get to it.

We open with the usual recap of last week’s show.

Here’s Austin Aries to open things up. A lot of people like him, a lot of people boo him, but now everyone has to respect him. He’s the man who initiated Option C last year and this year he’s the man who is going to cash in the X Title for another shot at the world title. Aries demands Hogan get out here right now to make the cash in official.

Cue Hogan who says that Aries is the man who initiated Option C and then won the world title (where have I heard this before?). He brought the division to new highs but last week he brought it to new lows. Aries committed the greatest sin of all: gimmick infringement. Therefore, tonight Austin has to defend the title against Chris Sabin and TJ Perkins, now known as Manic. Manic is in the same attire as Suicide, but without the word Suicide on his chest.

Kazarian says he’ll beat either version of AJ Styles he faces tonight.

Bound For Glory Series: Kazarian vs. AJ Styles

Kaz and Daniels come out dressed as Sigfried and Roy, with Kaz promising to make the world title appear around his waist in October. Styles knocks Kaz to the floor at the bell and hits a baseball slide to take him down again. Back in and AJ misses a forearm in the corner so Kaz can pound away on the mat. AJ comes back with a hard clothesline as Daniels is holding a stuffed tiger and wearing a blonde wig while playing cheerleader. The springboard forearm gets two on Kaz but Kaz dropkicks AJ down to get himself a breather. Not that it matters though as the Calf Killer makes Kaz tap to give AJ ten points at 4:02.

Rating: C. This was a nice little match as AJ continues to hone in his new character. The Calf Killer looked great and AJ can still fly as well as anyone else in the company. This is a pairing that has worked for years but I’m not exactly looking forward to Daniels vs. Styles #845 when they’re paired together in the Series.

Chavo gives Hernandez another pep talk.

Mickie James is in the ring with a ladder. She talks about having to climb the ladder to success and brags about being a country singer and being pursued for commercials. So Taryn and Gail can go out and break a leg and everything else, because they’ll never be as great as she is. Mickie is going to be Knockouts Champion of the century and will destroy whomever she faces for the title.

The Gut Check judges debate Ryan Howe vs. Big O. Howe gets to face the judgment.

The Main Event Mafia says the fourth member is revealed tonight.

Bound For Glory Series: Jay Bradley vs. Hernandez

Bradley takes over with a headlock and sends Hernandez to the ramp. SuperMex shoulders him in the ribs and hits the big dive over the top to take over. The over the top backbreaker gets two but Bradley comes back with a backbreaker of his own. Chavo tries to get in and the distraction lets Hernandez hit the big shoulder for the pin at 3:13.

Rating: D. This was barely anything at all with Bradley just being a warm body out there. I don’t know why TNA thinks fans care about Hernandez and Chavo as the fans go nearly silent during their interactions. They’re not interesting and the eventual match between the two isn’t going to draw any interest. Not much to see here.

Aces and 8’s talk about the X Title match tonight and Ray suggests no one should win it.

Bro Mans vs. Gunner/James Storm

Non-title here. Robbie and Jesse jump Gunner to start and take over for a bit, only to have Gunner clothesline Robbie down. Hot tag brings in Storm to clean house and backdrop Jesse onto Robbie’s crotch. Gunner tries a sunset flip attempt on Jesse but Robbie breaks it up, only to eat the Last Call. A Rock Bottom backbreaker (Irish Curse) puts Jesse down again but it’s a powerslam/neckbreaker combo from the champs to get the pin for Storm at 2:59. Basically just a squash but it was something of a mess.

Jeff Hardy is ready for Joseph Park tonight and hopes he doesn’t have too much Abyss in him.

Here’s the Main Event Mafia with something to say. They’re here to destroy aces and 8’s and to ensure that Bully Ray loses the World Title. Sting brings out Samoa Joe to be the force of change in the new Mafia. Joe says that with Angle and Sting at his back, he’s going to run through the BFG Series and earn his shot at Bully Ray for the world title. Angle says he put Joe in the Mafia because of the grueling matches they’ve had over the years. As for the fourth member, he’s another man who is rising up the charts in TNA: Magnus.

Magnus, also rocking a suit, comes out to a solid reaction. He praises the other Mafia members and Joe in particular for putting him on the map last year. It’s not just about the Mafia, but about the Mafia’s mission: putting an end to Aces and 8’s. Sting challenges Aces and 8’s to a fight at Destination X and guarantees a winner in the X Title match tonight.

Bound For Glory Series: Jeff Hardy vs. Joseph Park

Jeff grabs a headlock to start but bounces off Park in a shoulder block attempt. A dropkick works a bit better and Hardy takes Park down with a headscissors out of the corner. The Twisting Stunner looks to set up the Swanton but Park rolls away at the last second. Park isn’t sure what to do so he slowly whips Jeff from corner to corner and crushes him with a splash.

Off to a chinlock for a few moments until Jeff fights up and hits his usual stuff. A low dropkick gets two but the Twist of Fate is countered into a Samoan drop. The middle rope splash connects for two but Jeff comes back with the Twist of Fate to put both guys down. Hardy’s leg hitting Park’s face busted his lip open though, meaning it’s a Black Hole Slam for the referee, earning a DQ at 8:07.

Rating: C. This was better than I was expecting but the Park character has pretty much hit its limit. It’s been the same idea for months now and there aren’t many other places you can go with it without incorporating more Abyss into it. Thankfully they’re not treating him as anything special in the Series.

It’s time for Gut Check with Ryan Howe. Al Snow says no so Howe gets to Kick Out in thirty seconds, but the fans won’t stop booing him. Danny Davis says the booing has changed his mind because Howe didn’t stop what he was saying, so it’s a yes. Bruce Pritchard says Howe got a reaction from the audience, but it’s a no.

Doc and Anderson argue over who is the next VP of the club. The vote is next week but Ray yells at them for wasting time.

Video on Gail Kim vs. Taryn Terrell in a ladder match next week.

Next week there will be three Joker’s Wild tag team matches in the BFG Series.

X-Division Title: Austin Aries vs. Chris Sabin vs. Manik

Aces and 8’s are watching in the crowd. Aries is put in the Tree of Woe to start and Sabin nails a delayed dropkick to his face. A sunset flip gets two on Manik but Aries is back on his feet, only to be thrown out to the floor. Manik hooks an Octopus Hold on Sabin but Aries comes back in for the save. The masked man hangs onto the ropes and avoids a charging Sabin to send Chris out to the floor. Aries sends Manik to the floor as well and gets two off a middle rope dropkick to Sabin’s back.

A forearm to the back of Sabin’s neck puts him down on the ramp but Sabin blocks the brainbuster into a front suplex. Aces and 8’s come to ringside and try to pull Manik to the floor. The masked man dives on Doc and gets powerbombed down onto the floor for his efforts. Cue the Mafia to get rid of the bikers as we take a break.

Back with Manik being taken out on a stretcher as Aries hits a belly to back suplex on Sabin on the apron. Aries rolls Sabin up three or four times in a row for two each but Sabin comes back with rapid fire chops to the chest and a choke in the corner. A running boot to the chest gets two for Sabin but Aries drives him back into the corner. The running dropkick is countered by a boot to the chest, but Sabin misses another kick in the corner, banging up his knee in the process.

Aries goes after the knee and hits the running dropkick in the corner, but the brainbuster is countered into a small package for two. The brainbuster is only good for two so Aries hooks the Last Chancery, but Sabin grabs the rope to escape again. Aries can’t hit the 450 so Sabin connects with Hail Sabin but THAT just gets two. Another Hail Sabin is countered into a victory roll for two but Sabin pops back up with a discus forearm to put both guys down. Aries sends him into the corner for another running dropkick, but Sabin catches him going up and hits Hail Sabin from the middle rope for the pin and the title at 16:11.

Rating: B+. The stuff with Manik was just kind of there but things got WAY better after it got down to a one on one match. Imagine that: a showdown between two guys is better than a spot fest between three guys. Who would have guessed that? Anyway, this was a tremendous match and that finish looked excellent.

Sabin says he’s the next world champion to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event was awesome but it was the only thing on this show that was above average. Everything else on the show just wasn’t all that good, as it was a bunch of filler stuff before we can get to Louisville for Destination X. That being said, the main event was one of the best matches we’ve seen in a LONG time int his company, which makes the rest of the show worth it.

Results

AJ Styles b. Kazarian – Calf Killer

Hernandez b. Jay Bradley – Shoulder Block

Gunner/James Storm b. Bro Mans – Powerslam/neckbreaker combo to Godderz

Jeff Hardy b. Joseph Park via DQ when Park gave the referee a Black Hole Slam

Chris Sabin b. Austin Aries and Manik – Hail Sabin from the middle rope to Aries

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my book on the History of Starrcade from Amazon for just $4 at:

Smackdown
Date: July 4, 2002
Location: Fleet Center, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

This was a requested show and I don’t really know of anything significant on it other than one match which really wasn’t anything special. Anyway, we’re just barely into the WWE era at this point and we have an Undisputed Champion. Oh wait if that’s the case I think I know why this was a requested show, other than the date that is. Let’s get to it.

We open with a video of Edge talking about getting hurt in a cage match with Angle. He said he’ll be back and that’s tonight. Jericho came out and laughed at him about it, triggering a brawl. Jericho cracked the shoulder with a chair. Later in the night (or month, it’s not really clear) Jericho was about to do the same to Hogan when Jericho’s own music played. Edge came out for the save in his return. You would think this would lead to a match tonight or at the PPV, but it actually lead to a match at the Smackdown after the PPV, which is a little weird.

I miss the Beautiful People as Smackdown’s theme.

Oh I almost forgot: this is right around the time the company switched from WWF to WWE.

Lillian Garcia sings America the Beautiful. Lance Storm and the UnAmericans cut her off and I think I can hear Finlay being fired from here. Christian asks if the people know why Independence Day is celebrated. It wasn’t the day Will Smith defeated a bunch of aliens you know. Storm tells us what happened back then and about how the Americans went all over the world using its military force where it had no business. Test talks a bit as well. This is going on too long now.

Lance Storm vs. Rikishi

Feeling out process to start and Storm speeds things up. He strikes away and drops down onto the chest on a sunset flip attempt. The other UnAmericans interfere during the Banzai Drop, allowing Test to hit a big boot to Rikishi’s head and knock him to the mat. Storm gets the easy pin. This wasn’t much.

Taker, the Undisputed Champion, is here.

Here’s your historic moment, although it was last week. Kurt Angle issues an open challenge and a young kid debuts and takes the challenge. His name: John Cena.

Stacy goes up to the locker room and Henry answers. She asks if Cena is in there and here he is, in the green trunks and looking like a deer in the headlights. She says Vince wants to see him and he walks off. Stacy likes what she sees.

D-Von/Batista vs. Big Valbowski/Randy Orton

Orton had been around for a few months here but was just a young kid. Batista was the deacon for Reverend D-Von and had debuted last week as well. Orton has hair here. Batista beat up Orton last week so this is the rematch Orton requested. Val (I’m not typing that whole thing) starts against Batista. He tries to take Batista’s knee out but gets run over by a HUGE clothesline.

Off to D-Von and the veterans do some basic stuff. Orton comes in to a screaming girls pop. He’s always had a sweet dropkick. D-Von gets a neckbreaker out of the corner for two. Orton gets beaten down but manages to bring in Val. Venis gets a Blue Thunder Bomb but Batista makes the save.

Orton comes in and hot shots D-Von, but Big Dave (first name unknown at this point) puts him in a fireman’s carry and rolls through it like Kenderson does. That’s a new one. Or old one in this case I guess. Everything breaks down and Orton misses his top rope cross body. The spinebuster ends this. Cole: “Batista is an animal!”

Rating: C-. This was fine and it’s amazing to see guys like this in their very young days. You never know what you might have in any given match and this is proof of it. I’m sure they knew they had something, but I don’t think anyone knew how big they’d be. Somehow, these two pale in comparison to the guy that would be in the next segment though. The match was fine.

Jericho rants to Vince about how Edge came back and stopped him from taking out Hogan for good. Vince says Jericho sounds obsessed with Edge. I’m distracted by a swimsuit shot of Stacy in a thong behind him so I have to rewind it for a bit. Vince makes Jericho vs. Edge at Vengeance, which wouldn’t happen. Instead he would face the guy that comes into the office next.

Here’s Cena who is nervous to meet Vince. Vince says that he liked Cena’s performance last week and introduces him to Jericho. Cena extends his hand politely and Jericho rips him apart, talking about how he’s the first undisputed champion and how Cena needs to show respect. He asks what kind of Ruthless Aggression Cena has so Cena slaps him to the floor.

During a break Jericho demands a match with Cena tonight.

Angle talks about beating Cena last week but he feels even better this week. He’s got a world title shot and is feeling strong. He asks Marc Lloyd if he’s seen the new highlight reel. Angle has beaten up Taker and then made Hogan tap at KOTR. Then last week he threw Taker in the ankle lock for just a few seconds. What better night than the Fourth of July for Angle to win the title right?

Billy and Chuck are gay and have hot dogs. Make the jokes yourselves.

Tag Titles: Edge/Hulk Hogan vs. Billy/Chuck

This is the big match from this show. Edge is a Hulkamaniac from when he was a kid so this is his dream match. Hulk vs. Chuck starts us off. Hogan is just crazy over here. It’s an old WWF town so that goes without saying. Chuck hammers him into the corner and it’s off to Billy. Edge comes in and hits an Edge-O-Matic for two. Chuck snaps off a pretty sweet overhead belly to belly for two and control. The fans want Hogan as Edge gets tossed over the top. Rico and Billy try to double team him but Rico kicks Billy by mistake. Edge takes Chuck down in the ring and I want you to notice something here.

Hogan has been on the apron for about four minutes and he’s barely stopped moving. It could be pacing back and forth, it could be clapping for Edge, it could be pointing something out to the referee, it could be shouting for Edge to kick out, it could be trying to get the fans to cheer. He doesn’t just stand there uninterested, and the crowd picks up on that. It’s a very important thing you can do in tag wrestling and it gets the fans to notice you. Cena is really good at this. It’s an old rule that I’ve told you time and time again: if you play to the crowd, they’ll respond to you.

Anyway there’s the hot tag to Hogan and he Hulks Up on the way in. Billy is pounded on (he must be used to muscular men doing that to him by now though) as is Chuck. We get the old school double noggin knocker and it’s a big boot to Billy. Chuck hits a superkick to break up the legdrop and Hogan brings Edge back in with a double clothesline off the top. Rico breaks up the spear so Hogan knocks him down. He crotches Rico on the apron and Edge spears Billy for two. A double big boot and a pair of legdrops to Chuck are enough to give Hogan his first tag title.

Rating: B-. I can’t help but smile at this. This wasn’t supposed to be a serious match and if you get mad about Hogan doing this you miss the point. This was about feeling good and nostalgic and giving Edge a rub. This did all of that and was actually a pretty good tag match on top of that. Hogan as basically the Andre to Edge’s Haku was perfect for him and this was really fun. They would lose the titles in less than three weeks but this was what the whole thing was about and it worked perfectly. Very fun match and moment.

Chris Jericho vs. John Cena

Dig that totally generic rock music for Cena! Cena charges in but gets beaten down quickly. He spears Jericho down and pounds away and they go to the floor. Back in the ring Cena hits a slingshot and spinebuster for two. He’s got a fire in his eyes and you can see the star in him if they mold him properly. Jericho heads to the floor and suckers Cena in to take over. He takes too much time coming off the middle rope though and jumps into a dropkick.

Powerslam gets a very close two. He counters the Walls and this a DDT for another two. A corner splash misses for the American and Jericho takes him down with the bulldog. Lionsault misses and Cena hits his second high angle spinebuster for two. However Jericho is too good for him as he backflips out of a belly to back and hits a Flashback (sleeper drop) and pins Cena with his feet on the ropes.

Rating: B. Very fun match here which at the time was shocking. Remember that this is Cena’s second match on TV and he’s taken Jericho and Angle to the limit. They would fight again at Vengeance and Jericho would actually get beaten fairly clean. As a little trivia, to the best of my knowledge, this is the only time that Jericho has ever beaten Cena one on one on TV or PPV. Think about that for a minute. They’ve fought so many times and Jericho only won the first one.

Jericho offers a handshake post match and tries to beat him up but Cena hits the Protobomb and stands tall.

Rey Mysterio is coming.

Here’s a clip from Raw where the NWO and Shawn Michaels said that HHH would be joining the NWO.

We go back to Divas Undressed on Saturday where Torrie won the Golden Thong Award. Stacy says it was because Torrie sleeps with Maven, who was a judge. Torrie said Stacy was sleeping with Vince. Naturally we’re having a bra and panties match to settle things.

Earlier today, Jamie Noble and Nidia celebrate their new found fortune by getting a new truck and a new trailer because Noble’s aunt died. Oh and he has money now that he’s Cruiserweight Champion. Running water almost makes Nidia cry. They break in the bed.

Stacy Keibler vs. Torrie Wilson

Bra and panties remember. What do you want me to say here? They try to do some moves, most of them don’t work, they strip each other, they’re both hot, Torrie wins. She strips too.

We get a recap of the ladder match from Monday with Jeff vs. Taker, which I need to get to someday. Hardy got destroyed over and over again but he kept getting up after the match. Taker hit a Last Ride and Hardy got up again, saying he was still standing. Taker raised his hand and stopped hurting him.

Taker says he’s upset at Vince because Vince said Taker faces Rock at Vengeance whether Taker is still champion or not.

WWE World Title: The Undertaker vs. Kurt Angle

Taker runs over him with power to start and Angle bails to the outside. I think these are both tweeners at this point. Angle keeps trying to run Taker down and it doesn’t work at all. Finally he wakes up and takes it to the mat. Angle celebrates an armdrag and gets kicked to the floor for his troubles. Snake Eyes/big boot combo get two. Angle counters the chokeslam into a German to shift control again.

It turns into a fist fight in the corner with Taker gaining control. Shoulder block puts Kurt down as does a DDT for two. Here comes the Tombstone but Angle slides down and hooks the ankle lock and Taker is in trouble. That gets reversed but an Angle Slam (which looked like it was in slow motion) gets two. Ankle lock on again and Taker’s escape gets a big pop. Chokeslam puts Kurt down but the ankle injury keeps him from immediately covering.

Here’s the almost famous ending. Taker loads up the Last Ride but Angle wraps his legs around Taker’s neck in a triangle choke. Taker bends down into kind of a rollup. The three count hits at the same time that Taker taps (although if you watch very carefully, Taker starts tapping before the three hits. It’s less than half a second though so it’s fair). There’s no winner so there would be a triple threat at Vengeance.

Rating: B-. Pretty good match here between two guys that could do big matches like these with ease. Tazz’s eventual line summarizing this was perfect: The Undisputed Title is disputed. If I remember right this was something that happened in a UFC main event and was one of the first signs of WWE paying attention to them. I remember reading that somewhere so it may not be accurate. Anyway, good match.

Overall Rating: A-. Huge and I mean REALLY huge show tonight with all kinds of stuff happening. It’s fascinating to look at these guys at this point and imaging what they would become. Orton is probably the least likely as he had nothing going for him at all. He would injure his shoulder and become a cocky heel and that was all he needed. Anyway, great show and really interesting stuff.

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Monday Nitro #126
Date: February 9, 1998
Location: Haskins Center, El Paso, Texas
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Bobby Heenan, Tony Schiavone

We’re inching closer to Souled Out with the core of the card already set. As for tonight we’ve got the Outsiders vs. the Steiners for the tag titles for the 87^th time along with Hogan vs. Savage for the 870^th time. That’s a very stacked show for a Nitro in early February. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Savage vs. Hogan.

There’s no Larry Zbyszko and Tony doesn’t know where he is.

Here are Hogan and Bischoff to open things up. The fans want Sting but get to hear Bischoff saying he won the war against WCW by following the rules. Not Turner’s rules or WCW’s rules, but Hollywood’s rules. Hogan says he’s tired of fans talking about the NWO falling apart but he’s even more tired about hearing Savage is taking over the team. Tonight is about family business and he’s going to teach Savage a lesson in the ring tonight. Savage is up in the crowd and accepts the challenge, saying he’ll take Hogan’s spot at SuperBrawl.

Nitro Girls.

We get a quick video recapping Mongo vs. Bulldog.

Glacier vs. Steve McMichael

Louie Spicolli has jumped into the commentary booth and is carrying bags he says belongs to “his friend” Larry. Still no word on where Larry is. Glacier tries to jump the Texan from behind but gets slugged down to the floor with ease. Back in and Glacier pounds away, only to send Mongo right back to the floor. They head back in again for Glacier to fire off his basic karate stuff followed by a snap suplex. Glacier jumps into an elbow, gets forearmed in the head a few times and the Mongo Spike (tombstone) ends this very quick.

Post match Mortis runs in to attack Glacier because this feud can’t die. Mongo makes the save for no apparent reason and says Bulldog is next.

Norman Smiley vs. Konnan

Technical sequence to start with Konnan rolling out of a full nelson but getting dropkicked out to the floor. Back in and Norman stomps Konnan down before cranking on the leg in one of those holds that only old school wrestlers like Smiley know about. After a rope is grabbed, Konnan finally comes back with a clothesline and the low dropkick as the announcers ignore the match to talk about the main events.

A DDT puts Norman down again and the fans are WAY into Konnan in a rare sight. Konnan charges into a knee in the corner and Norman gets two off a PerfecPlex. For a jobber who hardly ever did anything, Norman could go in the ring. Back up and Smiley charges into the 187 (cradle DDT) and the Tequila Sunrise is good for the tap out.

Rating: D+. Not a great match or anything but it was a smart idea to have Konnan get the one good crowd reaction he’s likely to get this year. Smiley is another in the long line of jobbers that WCW could throw out there and get a decent match out of at a moment’s notice. The 187 looked good too and I’ve always been a fan of that move.

Mike Tenay interviews a guy from WCW Motorsports. As always, the fans don’t care.

Nitro Girls again.

Nick Patrick is out to referee the next match but JJ says not so fast my friend. Nick: “I’m not guilty!” JJ: “Don’t care!” Nick: “Lawsuits!” JJ: “Security!” This story continues to thrill no one.

Yuji Nagata vs. Disco Inferno

Nagata immediately jumps Disco in the corner before taking him to the mat for some kicking. A swinging neckbreaker puts Nagata down but Disco gets smacked in the face to stagger him back again. Nagata pounds away even more but runs into an elbow in the corner. Disco goes up but jumps into a right hand to the ribs to keep any momentum from starting. A German suplex looks to set up a top rope elbow by Nagata but it only hits mat, allowing Disco to hit the Chartbuster for the win.

Rating: C-. This was certainly fast paced and exciting considering who was in there. Disco’s push continues but there’s only so much you can do against a black hole like Nagata. Again, I know the guy is talented, but he isn’t doing anything in WCW and his matches are usually dull to watch. The problem is there’s no reason to care about him. He’s just Yuji Nagata: Japanese heel.

Post match Nagata comes out and lays out both guys with the chair before doing THE LA PARKA DANCE!

Luger says Hogan should be planning for Sting and Savage is crazy for wanting a No DQ match against him at SuperBrawl. Spicolli leaves to find who attacked Zbyszko.

Eddie Guerrero/Chris Jericho vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr./Dean Malenko

Eddie jumps Chavo to start (that’s a very common practice in WCW anymore) but Chavo sends him into the barricade after Eddie takes it to the floor. Back in and Chavo rolls out of a tilt-a-whirl and drops Eddie with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker of his own. Off to Jericho who is forced to take off the Cruiserweight Title before he can come in. Jericho runs Chavo over and the fans are all over the Canadian. Chavo comes back with a springboard bulldog and it’s off to Malenko who is VERY popular here in Texas.

Malenko cleans house on Jericho and they slug it out in the corner. Dean counters a middle rope dropkick into the Cloverleaf but Eddie comes in with a missile dropkick to break it up. The fans might like Dean but the EDDIE chants begin once he gets the tag. Eddie hooks an abdominal stretch with extra leverage from Jericho but the fans cheer for him anyway. Off to Jericho for a quick suplex and the arrogant cover (someone needs to bring that back) for two. Eddie comes back in with the slingshot hilo and Jericho adds a slingshot splash for two.

Chris and Eddie each snap one of Malenko’s legs back at the same time but Eddie brags a bit too much, allowing Dean to throw him into a hot shot. A belly to back suplex puts Eddie down but Jericho breaks up the hot tag attempt. The double underhook backbreaker gets two for Chris but the Lionsault only hits mat and it’s hot tag Chavo. Eddie and Jericho double team Chavo down but Eddie talks too much, allowing Dean to pull him to the apron. Chavo hits a German suplex on Jericho but Eddie shoves Chavo off the top, sending him into the Liontamer for the tap out.

Rating: B. The more I see of these guys the more amazing it is that WCW did things the way they did. This was an excellent match with the crowd going reacting to everyone out there. All four guys looked crisp and on point and the entire match was at a fast pace. Why these guys never got a shot anywhere near the top I’ll never know.

Video on the Steiners’ troubles.

El Dandy vs. Juventud Guerrera

Dandy takes the arm to start buy Juvy snaps off a quick hurricanrana to take Dandy down. They head to the apron where Dandy is backdroped up and over the post and down to the floor. Juvy hits a big dive off the top to take him out again as the crowd is loving this lucha stuff. Dandy is sent into the post but comes back with chops in the ring. A sunset flip gets two for Guerrera but he misses a charge in the corner. Dandy misses a cross body and walks into the Juvy Driver, setting up the 450 for the pin by Juvy.

Rating: C. Dandy wasn’t much but Juvy’s high spots were more than enough to carry the match. It’s very interesting to see a crowd that knows their lucha history and cheers even louder than the average crowd would for a match like this. Guerrera continues to be one of the better cruiserweights on the roster and he should be moving into the title scene soon.

Post match Jericho runs out and jumps Juvy but gets dropkicked out to the floor. Jericho wants to know what that was for but Juvy yells at him in Spanish. He wants a title shot but Jericho wants to know what Juvy will put up. “What do you have besides a rusted out 68 Camaro? Juvy speaks Spanish and offers to put up his mask which is fine with Jericho.

Steven Regal vs. Goldberg

Here’s a somewhat famous match. Regal takes him to the mat with a cravate and kicks Goldberg in the back a few times before grabbing the arm. Goldberg takes him down by the leg but Regal is quickly in the ropes. They trade arm wringers again before Regal kicks him in the face. Regal powers out of a headscissors and fires off knees to the head before Goldberg shoves him into the corner. Goldberg cranks him down by the arm and hits a belly to back suplex for no cover.

Goldberg looks for the spear but Regal headbutts him in the ribs instead and takes out the leg instead. Regal fires off knees and punches to the face but Goldberg comes back with a botched swinging neckbreaker. A shoulder block only kind of hits Regal and he blocks some strikes in the corner to make Goldberg look even more out of it. Goldberg finally hits the spear (more like a double leg takedown here) and a Jackhammer with no delay or snap to it at all finally ends Regal.

Rating: C. This was definitely more interesting than a usual Goldberg match but for all the wrong reasons. Allegedly (Regal has denied this) Regal was shooting on Goldberg here and most of the match wasn’t planned. It resulted in Regal being fired almost immediately and eventually becoming A REAL MAN’S MAN in the WWF. Goldberg looked confused in the match and Regal easily blocking a lot of his stuff made Goldberg look less effective than he ever had before.

More Nitro Girls.

We see the Nitro Party winner of the week.

Louie Spicolli vs. Chris Adams

Spicolli has a metal briefcase which presumably is Zbyszko’s bag that he referenced earlier. Louie hits a quick dropkick to start and pounds on Adams in the corner, only to be caught in a belly to back suplex. The Flock arrives at a much later time than usual for them. A belly to belly suplex and a backdrop put Louie down again and the superkick looks to finish but Louie gets in a shot with the briefcase for the fast DQ.

Larry Zbyszko comes out post match and chases Louie off before shouting that the NWO is dying.

For those of you who don’t know, Louie Spicolli died six days after this at the age of 24 due to a drug overdose/choking on his own vomit in his sleep. He was 24 years old.

Perry Saturn vs. Ultimo Dragon

Dragon has the awesome black/gold attire tonight. He starts firing off the kicks to Saturn’s back and chest but Perry pulls him down into an STF to stop Dragon cold. An overhead belly to belly puts Dragon down and Saturn hits some high kicks to the head. Dragon comes back with a quick headscissors but Saturn counters a sunset flip into a Tazzplex. Off to a cross armbreaker on Dragon before Saturn just crushes Dragon’s head with a boot in the corner.

Back to another armbar on Dragon before Saturn turns it into a Fujiwara armbar. Dragon fights up and hits a quick spin kick to the jaw to take over. They both fight out of German suplex attempts until Dragon connects with another kick. The super rana puts Saturn down but he gets to the ropes before the Dragon Sleeper can go on. An Asai Moonsault press gets two and a Frankensteiner puts Saturn down. Dragon reverses a suplex into the Dragon Sleeper but Saturn snapmares him forward into a small package for the pin.

Rating: C+. There is some solid wrestling on this show and this was another good example of it. This was one of WCW’s strengths as they could take any two guys and throw them together for a match like this. It’s much better than the WWE formula of having the same guys fight each other seven times in three months.

Hour #3 begins.

We recap Raven laying out Benoit on Thunder.

TV Title: Booker T vs. Raven

Before the match Raven says that Benoit isn’t here because of the DDT on Thursday. Booker is holding Flock property, in particular to Saturn. The Flock jumps Booker but he fights them all off until Raven gets into it. Booker takes them down as well but Raven finally catches him in the Even Flow. Saturn comes out for the Rings of Saturn on Booker as Raven shouts to feel their pain.

Hollywood Hogan vs. Randy Savage

Savage jumps Hogan on his way to the ring and lays out Bischoff as well. They get inside and Hogan is already begging off so Savage chokes him with the t-shirt. Hogan keeps crawling away as the fans are completely behind Savage. Hollywood gets in a thumb to the eye and pounds away in the corner before biting Savage’s forehead. More shots to the throat keep Savage in trouble as the fans want Sting. An elbow drop gets two for Hogan but Savage goes low to get us back to even.

Back up and Hogan hits Savage low before putting him down with a belly to back suplex. Hogan throws Savage to the floor and seems to be walking in slow motion. Savage sends him into the barricade but the ax handle from the top hits the steel. Hogan loads up a chair shot but Liz pulls it out of his hands, allowing Savage to get in a chair shot of his own. The big elbow connects but here’s the NWO to save Hogan.

Rating: C-. It was a fight instead of a match, but it’s hard to not smile at a Hogan vs. Savage match if you’re a child of the 80s. The NWO split is coming to a head at this point and this was a sign that things are really starting to change. This match was more feeling than actual substance but it was entertaining through nostalgia and a big fight feel.

Savage is beaten down post match and Hogan attacks him with a chair. The NWO walks away but Savage gets up and goes after Hogan as we go to a break.

Here’s Luger to call out Savage but gets Liz instead. Liz begs him not go go after Savage but Luger says he’s not falling for it this time. Here’s Savage and the fight is on but Sting makes the save. There’s the Death Drop on Savage as the NWO comes out…..and a net drops onto Sting and Luger, allowing the NWO to beat them down. There are so many questions here, I don’t even know where to start.

We get a clip of the Steiners vs. Hall/Bagwell last week.

Here are the Outsiders for the main event and the survey. We’re in NWO country tonight and Hall is glad that the band is back together after a long time apart. They mention Syxx for the first time in months and say their catchphrases.

Tag Titles: Steiner Brothers vs. Outsiders

The Outsiders are defending. For the sake of simplicity, Scott Steiner will be referred to as Scott and Scott Hall will be referred to as Hall. Tony says Sting may be injured after that attack. Rick starts with Hall and the challengers take over early on. It’s off to Scott but Hall blocks a belly to belly suplex and hooks a chokeslam. Scott pops back up and hits an overhead belly to belly to take Hall down. Scott has to go after Nash and Hall takes his head off with a clothesline.

Nash gets the tag and fires off the big knee lifts in the corner to keep Scott in trouble. There’s the choke with the foot and it’s back to Hall for the fallaway slam. Back to Nash for some posing and a big boot to the face for no cover. Hall hooks the abdominal stretch before slapping the back of Scott’s head. Nash comes back in and teases the Jackknife but elbows Scott in the head instead. Back to Hall who walks into a side slam but leverages Scott into Rick, knocking the legal Rick to the floor. Hall loads up the Edge on Scott but Rick comes in with the top rope bulldog for the pin and the titles.

Rating: C. The match was a standard formula tag match but the ending felt very rushed. It was interesting to see Scott take the long beating instead of Rick for a change and the match was at least different than the usual encounters between these teams. At the same time though, can we PLEASE get another team to hold the titles? It’s been a year and a half and one other team has held the titles, with a reign of less than a day.

Scott teases turning on Rick due to not getting the pin but celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. You can use a lot of words to describe this show but the first one on my list is LONG. If this was just a two hour edition it would have been one of the best shows they ever produced with some big matches, some excellent action and some good build for SuperBrawl. The problem though is we had stuff like Mongo vs. Glacier and Disco vs. Nagata doing nothing more than filling in time. Things are looking good for WCW at the moment, but where are Hart and Flair? They haven’t been on TV since the PPV three weeks ago. Anyway good show tonight.

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Be a REAL American!

Or a real whatever-ian you are!

Smackdown
Date: July 3, 2012
Location: American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas
Commentators: Booker T, Josh Matthews, Michael Cole

It’s another live show here and in this case it’s the Great American Bash. The main event tonight is a 20 man battle royal with the winner getting to be GM next week on Friday. That’s up in the air and only offers a few interesting options, which means one of them is likely going to win. These shows are very hit and miss so hopefully this is the former of the two. Let’s get to it.

We open in the back with a big party. There are girls in small outfits, Hornswoggle in the tub and Teddy in a Kiss the GM apron. Eve is going to be the cleaning lady tonight. Santino is brought forward to light the barbecue to officially start things off. Teddy and Santino back off from lighting it as Kane is here. He lights the fire for them in a cute bit.

Do You Know Your Enemy? Mine is having guests that are going to keep me from seeing Dark Knight Rises for another week.

Cole says he’s going to get inside AJ’s head tonight.

Here’s Del Rio to open the show. He’s going to talk about himself, namely his match at MITB with Sheamus. Sheamus is going to be sent back to Ireland because he’s just like all these people: a hooligan trying to take advantage of people like Del Rio. Alberto came here legally and is making money both here and in Mexico, unlike everyone here. He wants to send everyone here to the place where they belong, so he asks to see some people’s papers. One guy doesn’t have them so Alberto asks for security to take him out. The guy says this is Texas, not Arizona.

Cue Sheamus for the save and they brawl in the aisle. The champ throws Del Rio off the stage and into the barricade a few times. Ricardo keeps trying to help and eventually it allows Del Rio to kick Sheamus in the head. Ricardo opens the hood and Del Rio slams it down onto Sheamus’ back over and over.

Post break we look at most of the attack all over again. Sheamus is taken out and has some blood coming down his head.

Great Khali/Layla vs. Aksana/Antonio Cesaro

This is punishment from Teddy because he’s a sore loser. The guys start and it’s time for a chop in the corner to Cesaro. Khali misses a big boot and Antonio takes him down in the corner. Khali throws him aruond some more and it’s off to the girls. Layla isn’t exactly Trish or Lita but she’s by far the better in ring worker of the two here. Cesaro breaks up a cover and is thrown to the floor. Layout gets the pin at 1:45, and that means Layla pinned Aksana in case you can’t figure out that LAYla uses the LAYout and you can’t check the results below if you’re not sure.

Cody brags about having another qualifying match later tonight but Teddy informs him that it’s against Christian. Cody isn’t happy.

Raw Moment: Foley wins the title. They spend about as much time talking about WCW spoiling it and 600,000 people changing the channel than about the title change itself.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Cody Rhodes vs. Christian

Non-title. The idea is that Cody has never beaten Christian so he’s in over his head here. Cody sends him to the apron and hits a Disaster Kick for two. Rhodes looks at the case a lot and we take a break. Back with Cody holding a hammerlock before hitting a release gordbuster for two. Christian comes back with a middle rope missile dropkick and gets fired up.

He slingshots to the floor and uppercuts Cody followed by a running seated dropkick. Top rope cross body gets two for the champ. Cody’s Alabama Slam is countered into a sunset flip for two. He goes to unhook the buckle but Christian grabs him with a reverse DDT for two. The spear is countered but Cody misses the Disaster Kick. Killswitch is countered into the Cross Rhodes for the completely clean pin at 9:12.

Rating: C+. Well that was kind of anti-climactic. Naturally there was NO ONE that Cody could beat other than Christian to qualify right? I mean, there was no one else that could job out there other than a champion. The match was good but it makes the title look weak again which they had been changing for awhile.

Backstage Ryder starts a dance party after Slater is run off. Brodus takes center stage.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Dolph Ziggler vs. Alex Riley

Riley immediately hits a great dropkick for a fast two. Ziggler DDTs him down for a fast two and takes over. Riley makes a fast comeback with a clothesline in the corner and a spinebuster for two. The crowd continues to be into Riley which is interesting. Inverted DDT is countered but Ziggler’s Stinger Splash misses, giving Riley a rollup for a close two. Zig Zag gets the pin at 2:28.

Cole is in the ring to interview AJ. That theme song of hers’ is catchy. Cole says he’s fair and balanced, unlike AJ who is clearly unbalanced. We get a long video recapping everything AJ did last night. Cole cuts her off and says AJ wasn’t thinking. He calls her a teenager (she’s 25) and asks if she’s ever thought about pursuing a real man. One with power and influence and a former war correspondent who became the voice of the WWE.

Cue Bryan before this gets too weird. He calls Cole a sexist and says AJ didn’t mean for him to go through a table last night. It was all a misunderstanding. Cue Punk who angrily throws Cole out. He says AJ did something last night that directly affected both Bryan and himself last night. Punk isn’t going to pretend it didn’t happen just because AJ is guest referee. She’s not in a good place mentally and maybe some of that is Punk’s fault. Punk says AJ needs professional help but Bryan cuts him off.

Bryan says that Punk is trying to be tricky because AJ is the guest referee. The only thing Punk cares about is having AJ as guest referee because he needs her to retain the title. AJ kisses Bryan for awhile and Punk shakes his head and leaves. She goes after him and kisses him too. Bryan looks stunned and Punk looks confused. AJ skips off and does a YES chant on the stage.

Santino Marella/Sgt. Slaughter/Jim Duggan vs. Hunico/Camacho/Drew McIntyre

Camacho and Slaughter start things off and it’s quickly off to Santino. He gets in trouble in the evil dirty foreign corner and Drew pounds away a bit. A slam is countered and it’s hot tag to Duggan. There’s the Three Point Clothesline but everything breaks down. The ring is mostly cleared and the Cobra gets the pin on Hunico at 2:25.

Back to the party where Little Jimmy is jumping up and down. Sandow comes in and unplugs the cord. He says this isn’t what our founding fathers fought for. Ryder gets in his face but Sandow has a speech ready. A fight breaks out with the people chanting Ryder. Zach gets the punch bowl but it goes onto Eve. Everyone laughs at her and it’s time to keep dancing.

Hawkins and Reks both think they can beat Ryback but Hawkins won the coin toss and gets to face him.

Ryback vs. Curt Hawkins

Hawkins tries a sleeper but gets caught in the Over the Shoulder Boulder Holder. Ryback slams his head into the mat and hits an overhead choke suplex. Hawkins gets his head taken off by a clothesline and the Shell Shock gets the pin at 1:08.

Sheamus is out of the battle royal tonight.

Raw Moment: Vince Appreciation Night. Donald Trump made it rain money.

Here’s Teddy to thank the fans for letting him be the GM this week.

Battle Royal

Alberto Del Rio, Kane, Jack Swagger, John Cena, Heath Slater, Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, Big Show, Great Khali, Brodus Clay, Damien Sandow, Tensai, Ezekiel Jackson, Justin Gabriel, Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston, Zach Ryder, Santino Marella, Cody Rhodes, Christian

Only the big names get entrances as per usual. At the moment I’m probably missing some names but i’ll fill them in as we go. Show throws out Justin and Brodus quickly. A bunch of people team up to throw out Khali. I’m missing one guy but I’m not sure if Sheamus was replaced or now. Ryder knocks out Sandow and Cody throws out Santino. Oh Christian is #20. Show shoves out Kofi and Cody as we take a break.

Back with ten guys to go as Bryan and Punk slug it out. Bryan stands in front of the ropes and Punk charges at him, eliminating both guys. Ok so we have Kane, Ziggler, Cena, Christian, Del Rio, Tensai, Ryder and Big Show to go. Big Show chokeslams Cena but Kane chokeslams Big Show. Tensai goes after Kane and pounds him into the corner. Cena erupts and beats up everyone before tossing Del Rio. Kane takes an AA but Tensai slows Cena down.

Christian and Ryder work on Big Show but that gets them nowhere. Cena dumps Tensai but Show dumps Cena immediately thereafter. So it’s Big Show, Ryder, Christian, Ziggler and Kane. Show spears Ryder down and easily tosses out Christian to get us down to four. Ziggler puts Show in the sleeper but Kane kicks Show in the head to put them both out.

It’s Ryder vs. Kane now which isn’t the pairing I was expecting. Kane pounds him down but runs into the corner knees and the Broski Boot. Ryder tries the Rough Ryder because he’s not that bright, but he escapes the chokeslams and low bridges Kane for the elimination and the win at 10:50.

Rating: C+. Why not? Seriously, why not? You can’t say this was predictable and it was pretty fun at the same time. Ryder has nothing to do and it’s good to give him a featured spot on next week’s show. This is probably Ryder’s second biggest win ever and maybe it’ll be the start of a new push for him. Nothing special here but I had a good time with it.

Overall Rating: C+. This is one of those shows that’s more based around fun than quality. That’s ok but I’d kind of like to see something that actually matters on Smackdown once in awhile. This felt like any other episode and the live aspect didn’t really change anything other than the day it was airing on. As for the American aspect of it, there was almost nothing here other than some standard comedy bits and Duggan/Slaughter’s required appearances. Nothing to see here but it was nothing particularly bad so we’ll go with a little above average.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book on the History of Starrcade from Amazon for just $4 at: