Dynamite – May 6, 2020: Use What You Have

IMG Credit: AEW

Dynamite
Date: May 6, 2020
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We’re back live and that means we could be in for something a little more interesting. I’m curious to see if there are going to be any fans in the building this time. It seems that they can put about 25% of the fans inside and that could go a long way. I’m not sure what else to expect but we could be in for a fun one. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s TNT Title tournament semifinals.

Opening sequence.

The crowd is made of wrestlers plus staff, though there do seem to be some more than usual.

Cody vs. Joey Janela

Pyro is back if nothing else. They shake hands to start and we start in a hurry. Some shoulders put Janela down but he’s back up for a quick pinfall reversal sequence. Back up and Cody kicks the chop away, setting up a slap between Joey’s shoulders. Cody’s suplex keeps Janela in trouble but he’s back with a spinwheel kick. Janela sends him throat first into the middle rope and we hit the bodyscissors.

They head outside with Cody being whipped into the barricade but Janela gets sent into the ramp. Janela fights back but takes WAY too long to take a running start and Cody sends him crashing into the ropes. A moonsault off the stage takes Janela down and they head inside again. Joey hits a superkick into a top rope elbow for two as we look at a guy named Leroy who dances in the crowd.

Cody catches him on top with a reverse superplex but Janela hits a Judas Effect of all things. The powerslam plants Janela for two but he’s back up with a German suplex to drop Cody. Janela’s moonsault misses and it’s the Cody Cutter for two. They slowly slug it out with Cody getting the better of it. Cross Rhodes finishes Janela at 13:29.

Rating: C. This went on longer than it needed to and wasn’t all that entertaining. Janela still feels like someone who just does moves with no particular rhyme or reason and isn’t someone I want to see. I know he has a big following, but it isn’t something that is translating well to a big company. Cody shouldn’t have had this much trouble with him either, but that’s been a problem for AEW since its inception.

Video on the changes to the women’s division in Nyla Rose’s absence.

Nyla Rose shouts about how dominant she is.

Nyla Rose vs. Kenzie Paige

Non-title. Rose throws her around with ease to start and blocks a sunset flip with ease. A forearm just annoys Rose and it’s a top rope Swanton for two, with Rose pulling her up. Rose hits a powerbomb, followed by the Beast Bomb to complete the squash at 2:19.

MJF has been noticing a lot of people saying they’re the next big thing, even though they’re nearly thirty. That’s cool though, because he’s the real next big thing and he’s been on national TV for six months. People say he’s great but he’s no Flair, Rock or Piper. That’s called insecurity and now the 24 year old kid is a prodigy with more it in his pinkie than others have in their whole bodies. He’s not the Rock, Piper or Flair because he’s something no one has ever seen before. He is better than you and next week, he’s back on his throne.

Shawn Spears talks about Dustin Rhodes being destroyed last week and the only person who deserves the blame is Cody. Dustin’s career is over and as a brother, Spears can’t live with what Cody let happen. Cody seems fine with it though. Don’t tell me we’re doing Cody vs. Spears again.

The gambling is back on at ringside, with MJF looking at Spears and calling him brave. It takes bravery to call Cody out for everything. Spears says MJF’s comeback story is the greatest of all time. Tony is glad MJF is back, because he’s facing Jungle Boy at Double or Nothing. The spit takes wraps up the segment.

Frankie Kazarian vs. Jon Moxley

Non-title with a feeling out process to start. Moxley drops down so Moxley grabs a headlock, only to have it broken up for a chop in the corner. Kazarian goes right back to the headlock, which is broken up again. The third headlock goes on but this time Moxley reverses into a reverse chinlock with a knee in the back.

A backbreaker gives Moxley two and he’s out of the fourth headlock much faster this time. With that not working, Kazarian hits a spinwheel kick but gets sent over the top for a big crash onto the ramp. Back from a break with Moxley hitting a running knee to send him outside but the dive off the middle rope is kicked out of the air. Kazarian’s slingshot DDT gets two but Moxley is back with a release German suplex. A Backstabber cuts Moxley off and the Unprettier gets two.

They slug it out until Kazarian hits a dropkick and ties him up with….I’m not sure what to call it but Kazarian has the leg tied and is pulling on the arm. Moxley uses the free leg to kick his way out so Kazarian snaps off a German suplex. A heck of a clothesline gives Moxley two and they go to an exchange of near falls for two each. Kazarian suplexes him into the corner for a big crash but Moxley pulls him off the top. The quick Paradigm Shift finishes Kazarian at 16:29.

Rating: B-. This took some time to get going but they did a good job of setting up the idea that Moxley respected Kazarian. They set things up well here and Kazarian can hang with anyone so it was a good enough match too. It was a good use of some time and got Moxley on TV where he had to break a sweat to win, but did win in the end. Nice enough stuff.

Post match the Dark Order runs in to beat down Kazarian and Moxley, plus Scorpio Sky and Christopher Daniels for trying to make a save. Brodie Lee comes in and hits the discus lariat on Moxley. Lee talks about how there is no crowd here to give Moxley energy. The Dark Order is Lee’s energy and he is a different man than the one who fought Moxley in the past.

Now he wants the World Title, so Moxley can answer the challenge or they’ll make him do it. Lee lays the microphone next to him and Moxley says all Lee had to do was ask. A big boot to the face drops Moxley again and the beatdown is on for a second time. Lee leaves with the title.

Brandi Rhodes doesn’t like Jake Roberts and Lance Archer and knows what they’re going to do to her. It’s going to lead to a showdown in the ring with the two of them trying to intimidate her until Cody makes the save. That would make sense in 1991 but if Jake slaps her in the face like he did back then, she’ll slap him back. As her mom said, “Don’t f*** with people you don’t know.” She is Brandi Rhodes, so keep her name out of your mouth. This was your weekly “Brandi is a thing too” segment.

QT Marshall vs. Lance Archer

Brandi and Jake Roberts (in a mask) are here too. Archer runs over a wrestler at ringside as usual and then decks Marshall before the bell too. Some running shoulders in the corner have Marshall in more trouble and Archer drops him onto the apron. Back from a break with Marshall getting splashed and choked out to the floor.

After avoiding the threat of Britt Baker’s show, Marshall gets back in with a handspring enziguri. Marshall lifts him up for a suplex as Jake isn’t looking pleased. Archer pulls him off the top and hits the Blackout for two, with Archer not wanting the pin yet. Instead he claw slams Marshall a few times for the pin at 7:38.

Rating: C-. Marshall is a good hand but there is only so much you can get out of a somewhat extended squash. Marshall continues to look intimidating and has some good power stuff, but we’ve seen it a few times now and some of the shine is starting to wear off a little bit.

Post match Britt Baker jumps the barricade and DDTs Brandi onto the floor. Jake busts out the snake and lays it on the unconscious Brandi. Commentary points out how far the locker rooms are from the arena, because we’re supposed to believe that Cody wasn’t watching intently when his wife was out there with Jake and Archer.

Taz offers Darby Allin some assistance but Allin walks away.

Double Or Nothing rundown, with a #1 contenders ladder match and Lee challenging Moxley for the World Title.

Preview of next week’s show.

Le Sex Gods vs. Kenny Omega/Matt Hardy

Street fight with Jake Hager here as well. Hardy bites Guevara’s hand to start and it’s a big brawl early on. Tony: “We have found out that Jericho’s match next week will be against Pineapple Pete.” JR: “GET THE H*** OUT OF HERE!” Jericho is left laying on the floor and we get some Poetry in Motion on Sammy. Jericho gets back up and fights to the back with Matt but runs straight back in to double team Omega in the corner.

A double suplex drops Omega and we hit the pose for a bonus. Hardy, now in his regular gear instead of the Broken gear, comes in to clean house. Jericho and Hardy head outside again, leaving Sammy to kick Omega in the head. That lets Jericho come back in with the (Inner Circle branded) baseball bat for some shots from behind. Omega makes the save and knocks Jericho outside, meaning it’s time to break out the ladder and table.

A splash off the ladder sends Sammy through the table but Hager pulls the referee out at two. Omega’s slingshot dive is pulled out of the air so Hager can drop him onto the apron as we take a break. Back with Hardy and Jericho fighting backstage, with Hardy being put inside a Jacksonville Jaguars ice locker. Omega makes the save with some trashcan shots but Sammy sends him into an ATM (with Sammy even getting some money out).

Omega sends Sammy into a metal wall and Hager is sent through some barricades. Jericho runs Omega over and puts a cone on his own head like a hat. Omega comes back with a slippery when wet sign and shatters it over his back. Matt comes out of the ice bucket and he’s back in the Broken gear. He steals a golf cart, orders the cameraman to document these events (JR: “That’s what we’re doing mat. You’re on television.”), and almost runs Jericho over.

Omega is pulled into the cart with him and they chase Sammy down, eventually running him over hard. Jericho is still down so Hardy lays him onto a table, with Omega climbing a scissor lift. That’s raised into the air (JR: “What are we watching here?”) but Hager comes in for the save. Omega moonsaults onto everyone but Santana and Ortiz run in to save Jericho from the One Winged Angel. A triple bomb puts Hardy through a table and Omega is powerbombed onto the golf cart. The Judas Effect finishes Omega at 18:29.

Rating: B. This went longer than it needed to and there was a little too much laying around, but it was a memorable and entertaining match. The Hardy transformation would have worked better if they had done it once instead of twice, but it’s a clever enough idea for later on. The Inner Circle being back to full strength is a good thing too and it was a hard hitting brawl throughout. What matters the most though is it was better than sitting around in an empty arena hitting each other with chairs. You have a lot of resources available in the venue. Use them and see what kind of fun you can have, like they did here.

The Inner Circle poses in front of the Jaguars’ stadium with INNER CIRCLE on the scoreboard to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I liked the main event and Moxley vs. Kazarian, but I’m having a difficult time getting involved in all the Rhodes stuff. Last week’s beating to Dustin was brutal, but it’s still Dustin Rhodes. I’m very impressed with what he’s done lately, though that doesn’t change the fact that he hasn’t been some top level player for decades. It’s cool to see him in an angle, but it’s not an angle that needs to be such a focal point of the show. I get why people like it and care about Dustin. It’s just not something I’m going to get overly invested in most of the time. Good show though, with the main event shining.

Results

Cody b. Joey Janela – Cross Rhodes

Nyla Rose b. Kenzie Paige – Beast Bomb

Jon Moxley b. Frankie Kazarian – Paradigm Shift

Lance Archer b. QT Marshall – Claw slam

Le Sex Gods b. Kenny Omega/Matt Hardy – Judas Effect to Omega

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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Dark – May 5, 2020: Goldilocks Approves

IMG Credit: AEW

Dark
Date: May 5, 2020
Location: Undisclosed Location
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Cody

The show continues and I’m not sure what that is going to mean. AEW has made an interesting choice with this show as it means nothing but can often give you a few good moments of wrestling a week. Maybe that’s what they’re trying for and if so, well done. Let’s get to it.

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

Quick card rundown.

10 vs. Ryan Pyles

That would be 10 from the Dark Order, meaning Brodie Lee is with him. 10 runs him over with a clothesline and sends Pyles flying out of the corner. Pyles gets sent outside so 10 follows him outside, looks at Lee, and hits a hard chop. Back in and Pyles hurts his own hand on a chop as I try to figure out why the video screen says Dynamite instead of Dark. Lee is livid that Pyles got in that much so it’s a spinebuster to give 10 the win at 2:22.

Shawn Dean vs. Sammy Guevara

Cody calls Sammy the Starscream to Chris Jericho’s Megatron. I never watched Transformers so I’ll assume that’s a good comparison. Sammy pulls out his phone before the match and spends so much time talking to it that he gets rolled up for two. That means the beating is on so Sammy grabs the fireman’s carry and does some squats. Dean muscles him up for a suplex though and a rolling knee gets one. The count earns him some kicks to the head for two and we hit the chinlock. Shawn fights up with some shots to the face and a DDT but he walks into the Burning GTS for the pin at 6:20.

Rating: C-. Dean is someone who could be turned into something with some more time and experience and that’s not a bad thing. I’m not sure if AEW is going to bring him in full time or anything but for someone who is there to make others look good for the time being, he has done well enough. Sammy on the other hand comes off as a star every time he’s out there and AEW knows what they have.

Kip Sabian vs. Colt Cabana

Sabian has Penelope Ford with him and this is fallout from about six weeks ago on Dynamite. Sabian slaps him in the face to start and grabs a quickly broken headlock. They run the ropes for a bit until Cabana hits a bigger slap to send Sabian outside. Back in and Sabian misses a springboard kick to the face so Cabana starts in on the arm. It’s off to the leg next, followed by the arm and the leg at the same time.

With that broken up, Colt runs the ropes so Sabian holds up his hand and says stop. Cabana runs him over anyway, suggesting that he isn’t great at following orders. A Ford distraction lets Sabian take him off the apron…but Ford won’t kiss Sabian for some reason. Sabian kicks Cabana in the chest for two and a springboard missile dropkick connects for the same.

A stomp to the face blinds Cabana a bit but he can get the boots up to block a springboard splash. Cabana strikes away and hits the Bionic elbow for two. The Flying Apple drops Sabian but Ford gets in to block something off the middle rope. That’s enough for Sabian to get in a low blow for the pin at 10:27.

Rating: C. This felt like the biggest Dark main event in a long time and you could have seen it taking place on a slow episode of Dynamite. That’s all you can ask for in a show like this as it’s not like there is anything to be expected around here. It was nice to see a story tied together from Dynamite though and for what it was, this worked out perfectly fine.

A quick Dynamite preview ends the show.

Overall Rating: C. Of course this isn’t a show worth going out of your way to see but the thirty minute run time made for a pretty sweet spot compared to the very short or very long shows. You don’t need a show built around dark matches to go very long but you also don’t want it to have no value at the same time. This worked well enough and it’s not like you can get overly annoyed at a show this short.

Results

10 b. Ryan Pyles – Spinebuster

Sammy Guevara b. Shawn Dean – Burning GTS

Kip Sabian b. Colt Cabana – Low blow

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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Main Event – May 5, 2020: The Sad Reminder

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: April 30, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: MVP, Tom Phillips

No matter what the situations are around here, Main Event is going to Main Event. It’s been the same batch of repetitive matches and recaps. I was liking the random assortment of matches we were getting for a little while there and those have already stopped for the sake of it’s just Main Event. Lucky us. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Bianca Belair vs. Catalina

Belair shoves her down and then into the corner to start, followed by a running clothesline. We hit the abdominal stretch on Catalina, followed by a splash to the back into a nipup. A backbreaker cuts off Catalina’s comeback and we hit the double arm crank. That’s broken up and Catalina hits a running dropkick but Belair pulls her off the ropes. The KOD finishes Catalina at 5:43.

Rating: D+. Longer form squash here with Belair getting to showcase herself a bit, though it could have been done better. The match should have been a little shorter to make it more effective, though what we got wasn’t bad. Catalina was just there for the most part and that’s about all she should be around to do.

From Smackdown.

Here’s HHH for his big celebration and they’ve got a LONG time for this. HHH talks about how hard it is to believe that it’s been twenty five years….and here’s Shawn Michaels to interrupt. Shawn talks about how awesome this is and he has two words for you: “Social distancing buddy! Don’t touch!”. He’s sent out hundreds of invitations to HHH’s friends and family and they’re all here.

After we look at the empty arena, Shawn talks about how they’ve been friends for the entire twenty five years. He has some nice memories of his own twenty fifth anniversary celebration on Smackdown and HHH can’t even pick his favorite moment from that night. HHH can’t believe Shawn didn’t have his own celebration and promises heads will roll when he gets back into the office. Anyway, Shawn talks about how much money they were when they were in DX (ignore the fact that Shawn and HHH’s DX didn’t beat Nitro once of course) and we get get a blooper reel of DX moments. HHH: “Almost in one take.”

Shawn says his Wrestlemania career pales in comparison to what HHH did at Wrestlemania and we see a look at HHH’s Wrestlemania losses. Shawn: “You weren’t that good.” HHH: “How many losses did you have at Wrestlemania?” Shawn: “This isn’t about me.” After some more platitudes, Shawn gets to Stephanie No Fun, who calls HHH. Stephanie: “I’m watching your twenty fifth anniversary celebration.”

After more talking in a way NO ONE WOULD EVER USE IN REAL LIFE, Stephanie says to tell that lazy eyed….and the call ends. Shawn brings up Ric Flair, who calls in as well to praise HHH and his family. Flair: “Don’t let Shawn superkick you at the end of the segment.” Flair starts to cry to end the call, calls back, and cries some more as we take a break.

Back with Road Dogg on the phone saying HHH got a haircut but needs a bigger one. He finds out that he’s on live TV and gets out in a hurry. Shawn says they need to wrap this up but HHH says he called the bosses at Fox and says they can have all night. Shawn: “Good. We haven’t even gotten to the Katie Vick segment yet.” With that mind blowing line out of the way, here’s Vince McMahon himself for a big moment.

Vince goes into a story about seeing HHH wrestle for the first time. It was like the buildup to the egg hatching at Survivor Series 1990 and then it was such a big disaster. Vince then explains the Katie Vick story (without every detail of course) and the Bayley: This Is Your Life segment, which wasn’t a good idea but it wasn’t Bayley’s fault (Vince’s words).

Anyway, Vince loves him but this was a horrible way to go out. As HHH would say, it was ROTTEN. Vince: “If you haven’t put everybody to sleep by now, I’ll say goodnight.” The lights go out to end the show and some crickets chirp. Shawn: “Story of your career buddy. Story of your career.” This was a lot more lighthearted than I was expecting and there were some funny lines, but other than HHH and WWE, was anyone asking to see this for twenty minutes?

From Raw.

United States Title: Andrade vs. Apollo Crews

Crews is challenging and Vega is here with Andrade. Feeling out process to start with Andrade working on a wristlock. That’s reversed into an armbar as Vega isn’t looking pleased with the goings on. Crews’ front facelock doesn’t last long and it’s Andrade grabbing a headlock instead. They go to the floor for a bit, followed by Andrade taking him back inside to stomp away.

Some choking and a dropkick keep Crews in trouble but Andrade misses a running knee in the corner. That means a nasty crash to the floor but Andrade avoids a moonsault, causing Crews to tweak his knee as we take a break. Back with Andrade working on a half crab, only to miss the running knees in the corner. Crews hits an Angle Slam and they’re both down. An overhead belly to belly sends Andrade flying but he gets a boot up in the corner.

Crews is back with a press slam and the standing moonsault for two but Andrade is back with a whip into the corner. Now the running knees can connect for two as Vega is losing her mind. Crews blocks the spinning elbow but the gorilla press is countered into a DDT for two. The hammerlock DDT is countered into an enziguri and a powerslam gives Crews two of his own. Crews knocks Andrade off the top but misses a top rope splash and hurts the knee again. Andrade kicks him to the apron and the referee stops it at 16:45.

Rating: B-. I was surprised by the ending but this doesn’t feel like it’s over. Crews is someone who needs a major moment if he is ever going to break through and I’m not sure how much longer he can go without one. It’s not like Andrade has done anything with the title in four months, which is the case with almost anyone who holds it for almost any amount of time.

Money in the Bank rundown.

Humberto Carrillo vs. Murphy

Murphy takes him down by the arm to start so Carrillo reverses into a wristlock. A running hurricanrana into the springboard armdrag gives Carrillo two but Murphy sends him outside. Carrillo gets rammed head first onto the ramp and we take a break. Back with Murphy pounding away even more and grabbing the chinlock.

That’s broken up and Murphy charges into a superkick, meaning it’s time to forearm it out from their knees. A jumping enziguri takes Murphy down and it’s a springboard dropkick to send him outside. Back in and a missile dropkick gives Carrillo two but he has to roll out of the moonsault. Carrillo kicks him in the head for two more but Murphy hits a knee to the face. Murphy’s Law is good for the pin at 10:49.

Rating: C. Not too bad here and that’s as good as you’re going to get on a show like this. These two are in need of something to do, as Murphy being the lackey for the #1 contender isn’t exactly gold and Carrillo has been the same person since the day he debuted. Neither is on fire or even lukewarm at the moment, but maybe that can get better with time. Not that it likely will, but it might.

Video on Bray Wyatt vs. Braun Strowman.

Video on Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins.

From Raw.

Jerry Lawler is in the ring to talk about Money in the Bank, including the Raw World Title match. Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre come out and McIntyre tells Lawler to leave for this. Lawler is out in a hurry and McIntyre signs without much thinking about it. Rollins doesn’t sign yet so McIntyre says time’s ticking.

That sends Rollins into a rant about how he doesn’t want to do this but has to. This is bigger than all of them and Drew will be a great champion one day. Rollins has to do this because he had to suffer for that title. He doesn’t want what happened to him to happen to Drew because it is his burden to carry. When that time comes, Rollins can lead Drew as well. Drew: “You’re full of s***.”

Drew tells him to stop talking forever because no one wants to hear Seth talk. Rollins says that the big picture will be clear at Money in the Bank and he signs. He goes to talk about having faith but Drew sends him face first into the table. The ring is cleared and a headbutt drops Seth so the Claymore is loaded up. Cue Murphy to kick McIntyre in the head, earning himself a hug from Rollins. McIntyre is back up and Claymores Murphy to end the show. This was the latest in WWE’s rather long string of contract signings, most of which aren’t all that interesting. That was the case here, but Rollins’ delivery did help.

Overall Rating: C-. As usual, all this show did was point out how boring things are in WWE at the moment. We’re less than a month removed from Wrestlemania and you would never know it based on what we’re seeing. There is nothing that makes me care about what is going on and I don’t see that getting better anytime soon. They need a spark or at least a few hot matches, but that has been the case for way too long now.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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Monday Night Raw – May 4, 2020: Anyone Can Have A Few Bad Years

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 4, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Samoa Joe, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

We’re taped this week and that means it could be the last Raw with no fans in the building. That could hopefully bring some life to these shows, but there isn’t much of a reason to believe that is going to be the case. It’s the go home show for Money in the Bank and that means we need to build some momentum. May(be) the Force with be will them on that. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look back at the end of last week’s show with Murphy saving Seth Rollins and taking the Claymore for him.

Opening sequence.

MVP is in the ring for the VIP Lounge and talks about last week’s show breaking down into a brawl. We’re going to class things up a bit with the women’s Raw competitors, though they got in a brawl of their own last week. That means Asuka (with MVP speaking some Japanese to her delight), Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax all come out and have a seat.

MVP explains the rules and Nia asks if he even watches these shows. She is relentless and that is all she needs to dominate on Sunday. Asuka shouts in Japanese to confuse Jax so we’ll go on to Shayna, who speaks Latin to say she talks with actions. That’s what makes her different, right Asuka? More ranting ensues and a staredown is on with Shayna mocking her for everything until Nia stands up…and is knocked right back down. MVP has to break this up and a lot more staring ensues. This was rather odd and I’ll take that over another triple threat.

We look back at Apollo Crews’ knee injury from last week. There is a gauntlet match to name the replacement tonight.

Becky Lynch is back next week. It’s about time.

Gauntlet Match

We don’t know how many people are involved but Bobby Lashley is in first (minus Lana) and Titus O’Neil is in second. They shove each other a bit and the spear gets rid of Titus at 50 seconds. Akira Tozawa is in third and hits a quick Trouble in Paradise, followed by a missile dropkick. That just annoys Lashley and it’s another spear for the pin at 1:40.

Shelton Benjamin is in fourth and he sends Lashley into the buckle before he gets inside. A Blockbuster drops Lashley but he comes right back with forearms to the head. Shelton sends him to the floor and hits a running knee, followed by a slingshot faceplant onto the apron. A hard whip sends Shelton into the barricade and Lashley drives him in again for a bonus. Back in and the spear cuts Shelton in half for the pin at 3:47.

Humberto Carrillo is in fifth and we take a break as I roll my eyes at WWE bringing in three people for less than four minutes of work combined under these circumstances. Back with Carrillo kicking him in the head and hitting a missile dropkick for two. Lashley slams him off the top though and it’s time for some choking in the corner. He does it for quite a bit, and that’s a DQ at 10:49.

Lashley spears Carrillo in half so here are a bunch of referees to break it up. Angel Garza is in sixth and we take a break with Carrillo in big trouble. Garza chokes away in the corner as Zelina Vega is rather pleased. Carrillo is down in the corner so Garza TAKES OFF HIS PANTS and hits a running basement dropkick for two. We hit the bow and arrow on Carrillo, followed by a reverse slingshot suplex. A reverse Boston crab keeps Carrillo down and the Lionsault gives Garza two more. The Wing Clipper is reversed into a sunset flip though and Garza is done at 22:04.

Austin Theory is in seventh and we take another break. Back with Theory hammering away and putting on a waistlock before stomping Carrillo down in the corner. Carrillo comes back with a few kicks but the springboard spinning crossbody is forearmed out of the air. Theory’s top rope superplex connects but Carrillo ties the legs up in a small package for the pin at 26:55.

AJ Styles returns in the eighth spot and we take another break. Back again with Carrillo hitting a dropkick but getting planted down as Styles isn’t exactly sweating this. Another waistlock stays on the ribs and it’s off to an abdominal stretch, with Carrillo having to dive to the rope. AJ switches to the leg with a kick to the knee and a dragon screw legwhip. Carrillo pops up with a short DDT and they’re both down. A pumphandle gutbuster plants Carrillo and the Calf Crusher sends AJ to the ladder match at 38:49.

Rating: C. Not bad here, though I have no idea why we needed the first few names in there when Lashley slaughtered all of them. There isn’t much of a point in bringing them in for a show like this but I’m sure having Titus in there for 50 seconds was worthwhile in WWE’s minds. AJ is right back into the title scene and that’s a smart move, given the rather thin main event picture at the moment. Now can we please retire the gauntlet match for a long time?

Post match AJ wraps the leg around the post for a bonus. AJ says he isn’t a zombie or a ghost and there is no Undertaker here to steal his moment. He hasn’t lost anything because there are no rules in a Boneyard match. Now he has seized an opportunity and it’s worth it. He’ll do whatever it takes, and if that means throwing Aleister Black off the roof, that’s fine with him.

We get the first part of a Top Ten Money in the Bank moments countdown, including anything related to the briefcase at all.

Here’s Seth Rollins for a sitdown interview. Seth knows that Drew McIntyre is a dominant man but Drew is not a leader. It will not be Drew leading WWE into the future and while he will put up a fight at Money in the Bank, Rollins is willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good. Drew isn’t ready for what comes with being a champion so Seth is trying to unburden him from this responsibility. That’s what he will do on Sunday by becoming the new WWE Champion.

MVP gives Brendan Vink and Shane Thorne a pep talk. They’re ready to win and MVP looks pleased.

Murphy talks about Seth Rollins taking him under his wing and how much he has learned as a result. Now Murphy is going to get McIntyre ready for Rollins.

Brendan Vink/Shane Thorne vs. Cedric Alexander/Ricochet

Vink charges into Cedric’s boot in the corner but takes him into the corner for the tag to Thorne anyway. Ricochet comes in and kicks Thorne down for two but Cedric is pulled to the floor and sent into the barricade. Back in and we hit the reverse chinlock on Cedric, who powers out in a hurry and brings in Ricochet. Everything breaks down and Alexander knees Vink in the face. Ricochet kicks Vink in the ribs but Thorne hits Cedric with a running Cannonball in the corner. Vink kicks Ricochet in the face for the pin at 4:43.

Rating: C-. I’m sorry what now? If you want to push Vink and Thorne then fine, but having Vink, this newcomer with about five matches so far, pin Ricochet clean? Good on them for pushing new talent, but bad on them for having Ricochet take the fall, or even being in this tag team in the first place.

Street Profits vs. Viking Raiders

Non-title. Hold on though as the Profits talk about how they started here and then ran into the Viking Raiders. Tonight, they want the smoke. After a break, Erik backdrops Ford, who can’t quite stick the landing and thankfully doesn’t bang up his ankle. Ford flips around a bit and says you can’t touch him. That earns a forearm to the face as Ivar drops Dawkins on the floor.

A powerbomb into a top rope splash gives Ivar two but Ford dives over and makes the hot tag to Dawkins. That means a dropkick to Ivar and it’s already back to Ford. Ivar clotheslines Dawkins but it’s off to Erik, who drives Ivar into Ford in the corner for two. Things settle down to Ivar armbarring Ford but it’s broken up in a hurry. Another tag brings Dawkins back in to clean house and we take a break.

Back with Dawkins holding a chinlock on Erik and Dawkins coming in with a dropkick. Erik is up for the tag off to Ivar anyway and it’s a big clothesline to drop Dawkins. There’s a Bronco Buster for two but Dawkins gutwrench suplexes Erik for the double knockdown. It’s back to Ford who can’t manage to belly to back suplex Ivar. He can however enziguri him and double belly to back suplex Ivar with Dawkins’ help.

A moonsault gives Ford two but it’s back to Erik for more throwing Ford around. The Viking Experience is broken up and Dawkins spears Erik down. The spinebuster into the frog splash gives Ford two with Erik making the save. Erik throws Ford outside and the Viking Experience finishes Dawkins at 16:24.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure what was going on here but it didn’t feel like they were connecting. The action was fine, but it felt like they were in search of a way out. They kept doing a bunch of good sequences, though they just kind of kept coming and going until one of them finished Dawkins. On top of that, I’m not thrilled with the idea of seeing the rematch for the titles on Sunday. Why I’d want to see a sixteen minute match to set up a title match is beyond me. Have the Raiders beat Ricochet and Alexander and let Vink and Thorne beat a bunch of jobbers to get over (as you can still do you know).

Drew McIntyre is ready to take care of that confused young man Murphy.

More MITB Top Ten.

The Viking Raiders say this is dominance because they’re just better than the Street Profits. They extinguished the smoke.

We look back at AJ winning the gauntlet match and promo mentioning Aleister Black.

Black says being buried didn’t make AJ more humble. If AJ does throw him off, pray that he doesn’t get back up.

Rey Mysterio is ready for the first ever Money in the Bank ladder match at WWE Headquarters. It’s time for him to pull down the briefcase for the first time ever and become the WWE Champion again. The risk is worth the reward.

Here’s Charlotte for a chat. Charlotte talks about how she is the hardest working woman in wrestling because she works twice a week. This Wednesday she is defending her title against Io Shirai, who won a very hard hitting ladder match to get hero, but she will bow down to the Queen. Cue Liv Morgan to ask if Charlotte remembers her. Charlotte doesn’t quite take her seriously so Liv calls her out for being born with a silver spoon stuck…uh, somewhere. Sooner or later, Charlotte is going to be a champion and if she has to dethrone a self entitled queen to do it, that’s just fine. Charlotte laughs it off so let’s have a match.

Well we will in a minute as we need a video on Jinder Mahal first.

Charlotte vs. Liv Morgan

Non-title. Charlotte powers her into the corner and then to the mat to start, meaning it’s a nipup to show off a bit. A forearm to the back and some trash talk have Morgan in more trouble but she forearms her way out of trouble. Morgan hits a running hurricanrana and snaps off a middle rope missile dropkick. Charlotte sends her shoulder first into the post though and we take a break.

Back with Charlotte driving her face first into the mat a few times but Morgan fights back with a faceplant of her own. A sunset flip is blocked with some stomping and Liv hits a jawbreaker, followed by a springboard Codebreaker. Charlotte counters another hurricanrana into a sitout powerbomb for two but Liv gets to the middle rope.

A dropkick is countered (with the help of an edit) into the Boston crab, which sends Liv straight to the rope. Charlotte’s backbreaker out of the corner lets her go up top but Liv hits a Codebreaker to bring her back down for a rather near fall. Charlotte dodges Oblivion though and it’s the Figure Eight for the tap at 11:46.

Rating: B-. Well you knew Charlotte wasn’t going to lose here and thankfully Liv got a lot in the loss here. She was hanging with Charlotte until the end and that’s a mile ahead of where she was just a year or so ago. You can tell that they have plans for Morgan and that’s a good thing. They need some new names in the division and Liv is as good as anyone else for bringing someone from nothing to a contender.

The #1 moment in the history of Money in the Bank: Rollins cashes in at Wrestlemania. They needed to cut this into four parts to get to the most obvious choice possible?

Randy Orton is back next week.

We look at the inside of WWE Headquarters and a path wrestlers might take to the roof.

Drew McIntyre vs. Murphy

Non-title and Seth Rollins is watching from the stage. Murphy gets knocked outside early on and McIntyre throws him over the barricade for a bonus. McIntyre stares at Rollins a bit too much though and gets sent into the barricade. Back in and the Meteora gets two on McIntyre, who comes back with one heck of a chop.

Murphy strikes away again, only to get caught with a Glasgow Kiss. McIntyre knocks him hard off the apron though and it’s a top rope clothesline for two back inside. A super White Noise is countered though and Murphy hits a powerbomb for two. Murphy loads up his own Claymore but walks into the real thing for the pin at 6:21.

Rating: C. So yeah, the unstoppable champion pinned the lackey after a fairly competitive match. This was less a contest and more counting down until one of two possible conclusions. That’s what we got here and it wasn’t all that interesting. Rollins could be an interesting threat to McIntyre but sending Murphy out there isn’t the way to go about it.

Post match McIntyre begs Rollins to fight him but Rollins walks off instead. Rollins runs back to the ring and hits McIntyre with a knee to the face. He shouts about how this is bigger than either of them and looks at the title. The title is dropped though and McIntyre avoids a Stomp, setting up the Glasgow Kiss. Seth bails from the threat of the Claymore to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. There’s enough good wrestling on here to carry things, but my goodness what a boring time of the year this is. This show was built around setting things up for Sunday and they went about that in a weird way. Why would I want to sit for three hours to see McIntyre beat up a lackey? It has no bearing on Sunday, it doesn’t do anything more than give McIntyre a tiny bit more momentum, and it’s not like it was that great of a match.

That was the case with a lot of stuff here. Aside from the gauntlet match, it didn’t feel like any of this mattered for the most part. The Raiders are likely getting a title shot (which you would have given them in other ways than having them beat the champs, who we know they can beat), Charlotte wins again because she’s Charlotte, and Drew vs. Seth continues to be fine for a first major feud for McIntyre’s title reign.

Nothing in here is overly interesting and it feels like you could skip everything from Wrestlemania to Money in the Bank. The problem is how many times of the year that could apply to and it’s a lot more than it should be. Nothing really stands out and I don’t remember the last time we had a hot midcard feud. You’ll get some interesting ones with good matches, but when was the last time you felt like someone was breaking their back to steal the show? I know the roster is capable of it, but WWE doesn’t exactly seem like they want that to happen.

Maybe it’s waiting on Money in the Bank to be decided so something else can feel important, maybe it’s the lack of fans or maybe it’s the post Wrestlemania slowdown, but these shows just aren’t clicking. It’s like they’re placeholder shows, but that is the feeling far too often. We need something to light a spark in this company and I don’t see that happening anytime soon, which has been the case for years now.

Results

AJ Styles won a gauntlet match last eliminating Humberto Carrillo

Brendan Vink/Shane Thorne b. Cedric Alexander/Ricochet – Big boot to Ricochet

Viking Raiders b. Street Profits – Viking Experience to Dawkins

Charlotte b. Liv Morgan – Figure Eight

Drew McIntyre b. Murphy – Jumping knee to the face

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Ring Of Honor TV – April 29, 2020 (Best Of Flip Gordon): What’s In A Name?

IMG Credit: Ring of Honor Wrestling

Ring of Honor
Date: April 29, 2020

It’s Flip Gordon week and that could be an interesting choice. Gordon has been around for a good while now and has had some big moments in the company. He has yet to break through to the other side, but there are enough moments to make for a good hour, at least in theory. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

We look at Flip Gordon walking his dog and then talking about a rough childhood. He kept getting in trouble but then he saw wrestling and knew that’s what he wanted to do. Eventually he became a college mascot and learned how to control his body, followed by going into the military to join in his mind. After that was over, he drove to Boston and learned how to wrestle.

From ROH TV, May 3, 2017 (labeled as April 8, 2017 for some reason).

Matt Sydal vs. Flip Gordon

I saw Gordon down in Orlando and thought something of him so hopefully he does well here. They trade flips (you would think Gordon would have the advantage there) to start with Gordon nipping up about ten times in a row for a standoff. Sydal grabs a rollup for two and there’s a spinwheel kick to put Gordon down. Back up and Gordon gets in a kick of his own and a standing moonsault gets two. Another kick to the head doesn’t do much good as Sydal scores with his own kick, followed by the Shooting Star for the pin at 5:34.

Rating: C. I haven’t liked Sydal this much since his Evan Bourne singles run, which is quite the surprise after all the time I spent being bored with his ROH stuff. Gordon looked good here and I’d have much rather seen him in the Top Prospect Tournament instead of half the schmucks they had in there.

From Final Battle 2018.

Flip Gordon vs. Bully Ray

Gordon is in military gear and comes through the crowd carrying the American flag. He comes over the barricade and springboards in with a Phenomenal forearm as commentary is completely behind Gordon here. They fight to the floor with Ray being sent into the barricade for a running forearm. A trashcan to the head gets Ray out of trouble and it’s time for a table. Ray can’t powerbomb him through it though and Gordon grabs another table as commentary admits that they’re a bit biased here. Just in case you’re kind of dumb you see.

Ray gets in what looked like a chain shot and stops to yell at various executives before shoving ring announcer Bobby Cruise. The referee yells at him too and gets tossed aside, leaving Ray to threaten ROH ambassador Cary Silkin. Daniels runs back in and dives over Silkin to protect him but gets dropped as well. Gordon gets thrown down but won’t quite. Instead Ray grabs Gordon’s girlfriend and threatens to powerbomb her through the table.

The bloody Gordon wants to quit (without actually doing it) to save her but Silkin hits Ray with the kendo stick instead. Gordon gets up and makes the save before giving his girlfriend a very bloody kiss. A top rope flag shot to the head sets up a Crossface with the flag but Silas Young runs in for the save and Misery. It’s time for lighter fluid both on Gordon and a table so here’s Cheeseburger to go after Young.

That earns him Misery (shame they didn’t burn him instead) so Colt Cabana comes in to fight them both until a low blow from Young stops him as well. Silas gets the lighter….and there go the lights because Sandman is here. On the biggest ROH show of the year because THIS NEEDS TO BE ABOUT ECW TOO!!! Beer is consumed and Ray misses a charge, allowing Gordon to hit a good superkick (Sandman didn’t hit Ray). A less good Star Spangled Stunner lets Gordon grab a pair of kendo sticks and unload on Ray for the win at 14:23.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure on this one. They had a bunch of stuff that fit with the story, but at the same time there was too much crammed into less than fifteen minutes. Gordon winning on his own in the end was the right call so they got the finish right, but at the same time there wasn’t enough of a focus on him having to fight back and overcome the adversity. I did like it and it was good, but they needed either more time or less stuff. Like less Sandman for example.

Gordon talks about coming to Ring of Honor young but he got hurt twice. That’s why he became the Mercenary, and it fit the military theme as well.

From War of the Worlds: Buffalo 2019.

Flip Gordon vs. Bandido

The fans are VERY behind Bandido here and there’s no contact for a good while to start. Gordon takes him into the corner but lets him go for some floss dancing. My goodness there is nothing Best Of about that stupid dance. Bandido flips out of a wristlock and it’s a standoff to keep things in slow motion early on. Gordon runs him over with a shoulder and walks on his hands for a headscissors. That earns Flip a hurricanrana but he flips out of a second attempt and ducks a penalty kick. They both bounce up to their feet and it’s a standoff.

Back from a break with Gordon hitting a quick Blockbuster into an inverted Cannonball in the corner. The Kinder Surprise sends Bandido outside and it’s a springboard hilo for two back inside. We hit the double arm crank to keep Bandido down but he’s right back up with a spinning high crossbody. A Shining Wizard sends Flip outside and there’s the big dive to send us to a second break.

Back with Bandido showing off with the one armed gorilla press (geez) into a standing shooting star. Bandido reverse hurricanranas him out to the floor, only to get sent into the barricade. They both beat the count back in and the slugout is on again. Bandido kicks him in the face but gets pulled into a sleeper. They go into the corner for the break and Bandido crotches him on top, setting up the moonsault World’s Strongest Slam for two on Gordon. The 21 Plex is blocked and the Star Spangled Stunner gives Gordon his own near fall. Bandido hits the X Knee but it’s the Flip Five to finish Bandido at 25:35.

Rating: B. Take two talented high fliers, let them go out and do their thing for a long time. They didn’t build a ton of drama until the finish but the point here was to have two guys fly around a lot. Gordon getting a win here is the right move and I’m sure Bandido is going to be fine given the reputation that he has built up in a hurry.

Gordon talks to his dog and we get a music video on him to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This might have been the weakest of the Best Of shows but Gordon doesn’t exactly have the longest tenure so far. Gordon is someone who is going to be fine, but I’m not sure how far you can get with the first name Flip. Then again, Dalton Castle is a peacock and former World Champion. Perfectly fine enough show, but nothing worth going out of your way to see.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Impact Wrestling – April 28, 2020 (Rebellion Night Two): Now Do It Again

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: April 28, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

It’s the second night of Rebellion and that means it’s time to find out what is going on with the World Title. That’s quite the situation and hopefully they have a good answer to the problem. It’s a pretty rare situation so I’m curious to see what they come up with for the whole thing. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at the top stars and talks about how everyone wants to make it their night.

Suicide vs. Chris Bey vs. Trey vs. Rohit Raju

Josh on Suicide: “His origin story begins in a video game!” They take turns shoving each other together a few times before it’s a four way standing switch. Suicide drops off and watches the other three, with Trey doing the same. Bey and Raju do several more standing switches until they see the other two looking at them.

Trey gets sent outside and pulls Bey with him, leaving Raju to get caught in an octopus hold. That’s not the smartest idea but Bey gets back in to get caught in another hold at the same time. Raju kicks Bey and Trey down for two until Suicide comes back in to hurricanrana Bey. Trey puts Suicide and Raju down, leaving Bey to dropkick Suicide through the ropes.

A double dive is loaded up but Raju rolls Bey up for two instead. Suicide dives onto Raju and Bey, leaving Trey to hit a springboard flip dive onto all three. Everyone breaks up a cover and it’s Bey hitting a butterfly suplex for two on Raju. Suicide blocks Bey’s springboard armdrag and Trey hits a 619 to Raju and Suicide in the corner. With the three of them distracted, Bey superkicks Raju for the pin at 11:52.

Rating: C+. Take four people, throw them in there at the same time, and let them do whatever they can. It’s worked as an opener for years now and it always will work because it’s the kind of exciting match that is perfect for this spot. Bey winning was a good move as well and he has a bright future around here.

We look back at last week’s show.

Taya Valkyrie and Jordynne Grace aren’t here but we’ll still do Full Metal Mayhem with Rosemary vs. Havok.

Tessa Blanchard joins us via Facetime and promises to be back better than ever. She’s ready to beat Michael Elgin when she gets back and he won’t be World Champion.

Cousin Jake vs. Joseph P. Ryan

Ryan hides in the corner to start and then gets shoved down. A cheap shot lets Ryan gets in a few right hands, only to get knocked straight down again. There’s a toss across the ring and a whip into the corner gives Jake two. Jake misses a charge into the post though and we take a break.

Back with Jake’s arm in trouble and Ryan bending it around the ropes. The hammerlock slam is blocked so Ryan sends the arm into the post instead. Now the hammerlock slam works and we hit the quickly broken armbar. The driving shoulders have Jake in more trouble until he toss suplexes his way to freedom.

A Codebreaker to the arm sets up another hammerlock but this time Jake is back up with a spinning belly to back suplex. Jake hits a discus lariat for two and Ryan is sent outside for the big dive over the top. Back in and Jake’s sitout powerbomb gets two but Ryan is back with a superkick for the same. With the frustration setting in, Ryan tries another but has to settle for a rollup with a grab of the rope to pin Jake at 11:15.

Rating: C-. They had a story here and that helped, but Ryan just isn’t all that great in the ring. He’s mainly a gimmick guy and this gimmick is WAY less annoying than his previous one. The arm thing here was better, though it’s not like it was anything all that interesting in the first place. It could have been worse, but I’m still not going to care much about Joey Ryan.

Rosemary is at the bar and complaining about having to be in Full Metal Mayhem. Taya Valkyrie calls her and freaks out about wearing SWEATPANTS. Rosemary doesn’t want to face Havok again because that’s in her past but for now, Taya owes her one. A girls’ night is promised.

We recap Rosemary vs. Havok. They’re both monsters but this is taking place because we need a replacement match.

Rosemary vs. Havok

Full Metal Mayhem, meaning anything goes. Rosemary says they don’t have to fight but Havok insists. That’s fine with Rosemary, who staples Havok’s hand (as you do). Havok shrugs that off and takes the staple gun away to staple Rosemary’s back. A back elbow cuts Havok off though and a Sling Blade puts her down. It’s time for the street signs to Havok’s back until she gets in a big boot.

Havok charges into a chair in the corner though and Rosemary chokes her with a chain. That lets Rosemary shout about how James Mitchell’s blood is on Havok’s hands. Choking ensues until Havok pulls her in with the chain. More weapons are brought in and Havok hits a running knee in the corner. Rosemary pulls her face first into an open chair though and they’re both down, with the chair wrapped around Havok’s head.

As you might expect, that gets her pulled hard into the corner…and here’s indy wrestler Nevaeh to watch. The two of them don’t seem to notice as Havok hits a Samoan drop onto the ramp. A running knee sends a trashcan into Rosemary against the post but she pulls out a hard hat to block a trashcan shot to the head. Back in and Rosemary loads up two chairs but gets sent into one in the corner. Havok chokeslams her onto the two open chairs for two so it’s time to choke with various things. Rosemary grabs a pipe though and knocks Havok silly, followed by another shot for the pin at 12:23.

Rating: B-. Given the lack of build for this, they beat each other up rather well and the Nevaeh cameo could go somewhere. Taya and Jordynne can do their thing later on and now Rosemary could serve as a good challenger for the winner down the road. All in all, perfectly fine here and a good, hard hitting match.

Willie Mack, with Rich Swann, talks about how big a fan he was of the X-Division growing up and Swann welcomes him to the club. Johnny Swinger comes up to ask for his title shot so they can all be in the champs’ club. Mack: “This guy smells like a car wash.”

Flashback Moment of the Week: Rich Swann beats Sami Callihan at Rebellion 2019.

Michael Elgin is disappointed that Tessa Blanchard and Eddie Edwards aren’t here because he can’t beat them up. Tonight, he becomes World Champion.

Video on Michael Elgin.

Here’s Elgin to address the World Title situation. He debuted at Rebellion 2019 and set his sights on the World Title. That was going to be realized here and it’s clear that Tessa is stuck in Mexico. Eddie has already gotten enough of him so get a referee out here right not to declare him the World Champion. Before the announcement is finished though, here’s Moose with the TNA World Title.

Moose says that Tessa is holding the Impact World Title hostage and Elgin agrees, because it’s his title. We hear about the title mattering, but Elgin calls him out for running down TNA and then talking about being World Champion. Elgin tells Moose to go back to the midcard so the challenge is on, but here’s Hernandez to interrupt. He wants in on this too, so ring the bell.

TNA World Title: Moose vs. Hernandez vs. Michael Elgin

The title is vacant coming in….I think? We take a break less than ten seconds in and come back with Hernandez blocking Elgin’s suplex, allowing Moose, in his Ultimate Warrior inspired gear, to break things up. Elgin throws Moose down and hammers on Hernandez in the corner, setting up a northern lights suplex for two on Moose. Hernandez runs them both over but Elgin is back up and grabs a half crab to put Hernandez back in trouble.

That’s broken up and Moose is knocked out to the apron. Elgin’s middle rope dropkick gets two on Hernandez and we take a break. Back with Moose still down and Elgin slugging it out with Elgin. Moose comes back in and breaks up Elgin’s charge into the corner with a boot to the face.

Elgin goes up but gets caught with a dropkick, only to have Moose go after Hernandez. A superplex brings Moose back down and we take another break. Back with Hernandez chopping away and kicking Elgin in the face for two. Moose makes his own save with a bunch of shoulders and a splash for two on Hernandez, with Josh calling him the Ultimate Moose to make the reference clear.

Elgin German suplexes both of them at the same time for two but Moose is back with the chokebomb out of the corner for two on Hernandez. That’s enough for Elgin, who buckle bombs Moose into the corner, only to get speared down. Hernandez gives Moose a spinebuster but Elgin steals the two. The Elgin Bomb hits Hernandez so Moose pulls the ref out at two. Elgin shoves the referee down so here’s a replacement, only to have Hernandez dive onto Elgin and take out another referee. Back in and Moose spears Hernandez for the fast pin at 28:32.

Rating: C+. This went on longer than it needed to and they could have done the same thing if they cut out about seven to ten minutes. What we got was good stuff though and Moose is now set up as the next challenger for Tessa. She has a lot to do when she gets back, but it could be a long time before we finally get there. Anyway, this was a fine power three way, though they went longer than they needed to.

Moose is announced as the new champion to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. The wrestling was mostly good and they did what they could have done with everything being all over the place. As is the case with almost any wrestling show these days, you have to put some big asterisks next to it and that’s perfectly fine. It was a solid show and there was enough good wrestling to make the whole thing work. Now comes the hard part: keep the momentum going after two successful pay per view shows.

Results

Chris Bey b. Rohit Raju, Suicide and Trey – Superkick to Raju

Joseph P. Ryan b. Cousin Jake – Rollup while holding the rope

Rosemary b. Havok – Pipe to the head

Moose b. Hernandez and Michael Elgin – No Jackhammer Needed to Hernandez

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown – December 2, 2005: The Hurry Up Game

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: December 2, 2005
Location: US Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s time to start wrapping up the year as we’re on the road to Armageddon and we’re coming off both Survivor Series and the Smackdown Special. The Special helped as it can serve as a launchpad towards the pay per view, since Raw vs. Smackdown was mostly wrapped up on Sunday. Let’s get to it.

Here’s the special if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Randy Orton blowing Undertaker up at the Special.

Here are Randy and Bob Orton to brag about what Randy did to Undertaker. Randy makes it clear that he killed the Undertaker, leaving himself as the only true phenom. He deserves something for what he has accomplished: the World Heavyweight Championship. The fans don’t seem to agree so Randy lists his resume and says he doesn’t care what they think. He calls Batista out for the Armageddon title match and promises to win the title. That’s not arrogance, because it’s destiny.

Tag Team Battle Royal

Animal/Heidenreich, Funaki/Scotty 2 Hotty, the Dicks, Paul London/Brian Kendrick, Nunzio/Vito, Mexicools

Only one member has to be eliminated and the winners get a Tag Team Title shot at the pay per view. MNM comes out to watch and Cole is rather pleased with Melina doing the splits on the announcers’ table. Heidenreich glares down at the champs to start and doesn’t realize that Animal is getting attacked by everyone else. That is broken up in a hurry and Nunzio is out.

Animal accidentally eliminates Heidenreich as well though….and there go the lights as we take a break. Back with everything fine and Scotty having been eliminated during the commercial. The Dicks eliminate London, leaving us with the Dicks and the Mexicools. The Mexicools get the crowd behind them in a hurry but it’s a double fireman’s carry faceplant to drop Super Crazy but Psicosis eliminates both of them at once for the win.

Rating: D. Well that happened. The Mexicools vs. MNM sounds…well actually it doesn’t sound terrible. They kept this very short and the lights going out was weird, but it’s nice like it seems to have made much of a difference. Maybe the title match will wind up being good, but this was a very quick and rather nothing setup for a pay per view match.

JBL says nothing would have happened if he had been with Rey Mysterio on Tuesday. Tonight, they’ll take care of Kane and Big Show.

Chris Benoit vs. William Regal

Booker T. and Sharmell are on commentary, which hopefully doesn’t bring the match down. Benoit goes after the arm to start and blocks Regal’s escape attempt. The threat of a Sharpshooter earns Benoit some shots to the face and Regal knocks him outside. A ram into the barricade lets Regal slap on a dragon sleeper back inside, followed by putting Benoit’s head against the post.

Regal kicks said head into said post and Benoit is barely getting up. Benoit shrugs off some shots to the head and sweeps the leg but Regal kicks away a Sharpshooter attempt. Some exploder suplexes and a forearm give Regal two but a bloody Benoit snaps off some German suplexes. The Crossface makes Regal tap in a hurry.

Rating: B-. This is the kind of hard hitting and almost brutal match that you don’t get to see very often on a weekly TV show. These two know how to work this kind of match to near perfection and while they didn’t have time to get that far, what we got was rather enjoyable. Regal might have been busted open as well, just for that little extra touch.

Immediately after the match, Benoit dives onto Booker and makes him tap on the floor with the Crossface.

The Ortons are in the back and a clock goes nuts. Uh oh.

Randy Orton vs. Matt Hardy

Orton shoulders him down to start but Hardy is right back with an armdrag into an armbar. A dropkick and elbow to the face give Orton two each and we hit the chinlock. That’s broken up and they head to the floor for a quick brawl, followed by Matt hitting the Side Effect for two. The moonsault misses though and the RKO gives Orton the fast pin.

Rating: C. And Matt continues to fall, which might have something to do with the whole mess at the end of Survivor Series. Couple that with Orton heading for another big match with Undertaker and this one wasn’t exactly in doubt. At least they had Hardy get in a bit of offense, but it’s pretty clear that he’s done at the moment.

Post match the gong sounds and Undertaker’s voice says this is the man Randy tried to kill. The Ortons try to leave but an explosion keeps them at ringside. Randy goes through the crowd but he runs into a casket as he tries to go through an exit. Back in and ring, the voice talks about how he does the killing so Randy bails through the crowd again. Another explosion scares him back to ringside again so the voice says Orton looks lost. Undertaker knows where he’s going: straight to h***…..in the Cell. So there’s your blowoff match.

Post break Randy panics to Teddy Long, who makes the mat at Armageddon. Teddy isn’t messing with Undertaker so he’s not changing the match.

New interview Kristal Marshall talks to Simon Dean, who isn’t scared of the debuting Boogeyman. Dean isn’t worried because he has the Simon System, featuring a new item. He pulls off a cover and it’s….the Boogeyman’s head, singing Oh My Darling Clementine. Plus eating worms of course.

Raw Rebound.

Simon Dean vs. Boogeyman

And there’s no Simon, so here’s security to drag him to the ring. The arena has a good bit of smoke in it after Boogeyman’s entrance and Dean begs off immediately. Boogeyman busts out the worms and throws them at Simon, setting up a reverse World’s Strongest Slam for the fast pin. Well he certainly debuted, and that’s about as good as it’s going to get here.

Video on the European tour.

Video on Bobby Lashley.

Bobby Lashley vs. Sylvan

Sylvan says people are here to see him and jumps Lashley before the bell. This goes as well as you would expect as Lashley throws him around and hits the delayed vertical suplex. A few shots to the face put Lashley down and there’s a middle rope dropkick for one. Sylvan strikes away and drops some elbows to the back but Lashley pops up. More tossing ensues and it’s the Dominator to finish Sylvan.

Rating: D+. Who in the world decided to give Sylvan this much offense against Lashley? The match wasn’t quite the dominance you would have expected and that took me out of things a bit. The appeal of Lashley is to have him run people over and that’s not what we got here. He didn’t do well at Survivor Series and this didn’t make it any better, so maybe things are slowing down for him.

Big Show/Kane vs. Rey Mysterio/John Bradshaw Layfield

Non-title and Rey is injured coming in. JBL goes after Kane to start and is quickly knocked straight into the corner for his efforts. The threat of an early Clothesline From JBL sends Kane outside so Big Show gets in a right hand. Rey hits the seated senton to Kane from the apron and it’s Big Show coming in. JBL takes out the knee and Rey adds a dropkick, setting up JBL’s top rope shoulder for a good looking knockdown.

Kane gets JBL in the corner though and now the beating is on. A running shoulder gets JBL a breather so Rey tags himself in, only to get knocked down in a hurry. The referee tries to break up a fight with JBL and Kane, meaning it’s a thumb to JBL’s eye. That’s enough for him so he walks out as we take a break.

Back with Show kicking Rey in the bad ribs as the BATISTA chants are going strong. Show stands on the ribs but Rey uses the speed to make Show knock Kane down by mistake. Rey goes after Show’s leg and kicks them both into the ropes, setting up back to back 619s. The springboard is just a bad idea though and Show pulls him out of the air for the chokeslam and the pin.

Rating: C-. JBL was actually showing some fire at the start here and that made things a little better. The lack of Batista was surprising but you can almost pencil him in for the post match save. Rey was trying here and while it did go a little far with how much he could do to Show and Kane, it didn’t go into the ridiculous areas and Show pinned him clean with the chokeslam. Not the best overall, but it could have been a lot worse.

Post match the beatdown is on but Batista finally comes out for the save. Some chair shots leave the Raw guys knocked out to end the show. That sounds like a pay per view tag match to me.

Overall Rating: C. This was a show where the wrestling wasn’t what mattered most, but it did bring things down a good bit. There was some good stuff here with setting up Armageddon and that’s what matters most here. They don’t have much time to get ready for the pay per view so hitting the ground running was the best thing that they could do. Not a great wrestling show, but it set things in motion, as it needed to do.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown Special: It Actually Works

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown Special
Date: November 29, 2005
Location: US Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

This is a bonus show for the sake of….I’m really not sure actually but it’s airing live and it’s only an hour long. We have two matches this time around with Rey Mysterio vs. Big Show and Match #2 in the Best of Seven series for the US Title. If either of those is good then the show will probably be a success. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Booker T. vs. Chris Benoit

Match #2 in the Best of Seven series with Booker, with Sharmell, up 1-0. Benoit starts fast and snaps off a suplex, followed by a belly to back for two. Booker gets in a hot shot for a breather but Benoit is right back with a northern lights suplex for two more. A backdrop puts Booker on the floor but the dive through the ropes leaves Benoit crashing.

Back from a break with Cole saying this is World Wrestling Entertainment and recapping the story, plus Tazz saying who is in which color gear. Why is that such a rare thing to say? Someone flipping through the channels and seeing this as they come back from a break is told in about ten seconds what is going on and who is who. Do that more often. Benoit fights out of a bow and arrow but gets spinwheel kicked and side slammed for two. Some suplexes (with Tazz explaining the differences) take Booker down and a German suplex cuts off the comeback.

Sharmell offers a distraction but Benoit hits the Swan Dive for a delayed two anyway. They fight to the apron with Benoit being knocked into the barricade for….two, though there might have been a botch as the referee just stopped counting. To Nick Patrick’s credit though, he signaled that Benoit’s shoulder was up so if it was a botch (and it might not have been), Patrick made a great save there. Another German suplex drops Booker but he’s right back with the ax kick for the pin and the 2-0 lead.

Rating: C+. They were hitting each other hard here though you could tell something was off at the end. At least they didn’t get lost or anything though and just had Booker hit his finisher for the fast win. There was nothing here that was bad and they are going to be fine doing (likely) five more matches.

Video on Eddie Guerrero.

Earlier today, Rey prayed for Eddie to be his guardian angel and dedicated his match to him.

Video on Rey Mysterio, explaining the idea of lucha libre as free form wrestling.

Video on Big Show, who is big and strong, including swinging Mysterio, then tied to a backboard, against the post.

Big Show vs. Rey Mysterio

Rey rides out in the low rider to Eddie’s music (walking past a CM Punk sign on the way to the ring) and it’s time to stick and move to start. Show throws him to the floor early on but Rey slips back in and hits a baseball slide. Back from a break with Show throwing him around and hitting a big forearm to the spine. The choking/face shoving is on as Rey shouts for Eddie. There’s an elbow drop, which Tazz says is like a redwood tree falling on a bicycle. So Rey Mysterio is a bicycle. The things you learn on live television.

Show throws him outside and then back in, allowing Rey to hit a dropkick through the ropes. That just annoys Show, who powerbombs him onto the hood of the low rider. Back from a break with Rey biting at the face but Show shrugs him off, meaning it’s a ref bump. Show grabs a chair but Rey takes it away and unloads on him. More shots put Show down and the frog splash connects, drawing out Kane. There’s the double chokeslam so here’s Undertaker to scare Kane off. We’ll say the match is thrown out somewhere in here.

Rating: C-. This is the kind of pairing where there is only so much that they can do and that limit was reached. I did like that they went with the gimmick ending rather than the fluke or even clean finish as there was no need to have either of them take a fall here. Not bad, but you can’t get much out of Rey sticking and moving and then getting beaten up for most of the match.

Post match, Show gets taken down and Kane runs back in to get chokeslammed. A big boot puts Show on the floor but here’s Randy Orton with an RKO (with Undertaker taking it like a swinging neckbreaker). Randy and his dad Bob look at the low rider as Undertaker sits up. With nothing else working, Randy grabs a tire iron from the trunk and knocks Undertaker silly. Another shot to the head with the tire iron knocks Undertaker cold over the back seat so Randy jumps in the car and backs it through the set. Randy gets out and a bunch of explosions go off to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. It was a quick sit and I liked enough of it so call it a nice bonus. I liked that they treated it like something for new fans, as so much of the regular shows are only for new viewers. That helped a lot here and is something I could go for more often. It’s nothing you need to see, but you can almost guarantee another Undertaker vs. Orton match for Armageddon. Your mileage may vary there, just as it probably will here.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown – May 1, 2020: They Need Some Pepper

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: May 1, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re almost to Money in the Bank and this time around that means we get to find out who will be filling out the ladder matches. There are two qualifying matches left to go and that means it’s time for at least Wrestlemania rematch. I’m not sure where this is going to go but it could be an interesting show. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Daniel Bryan to open things up. He loves new challenges and he can’t wait to compete in the most unique Money in the Bank match of all time. Now granted he’s a little worried about getting fined for breaking something expensive at Titan Towers. Nine years ago, he couldn’t even get booked on Smackdown and then he won Money in the Bank. Now he knows how important this is and he’s looking forward to the challenge.

Bryan wanted his friend and coach Drew Gulak to be in the match with him but that isn’t happening due to King Corbin. Cue Corbin for their match, but first we need to see a video of him taking out Gulak last week. Bryan brings up Corbin being one of the four people who managed to lose a Money in the Bank cash in so not Corbin is going to teach Bryan a lesson.

Daniel Bryan vs. King Corbin

Bryan takes him down by the leg to start and kicks away before grabbing a leglock. Corbin fights up and starts slugging away, including a cheap shot when the referee tries to break things up. A right hand knocks Bryan off the top and there’s a whip into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Corbin throwing him down and hitting a knee to the face.

Corbin’s slide under the ropes clothesline is cut off by a suicide dive, because it’s not like isn’t that hard of a move to scout. Bryan starts kicking away at the leg and grabs an ankle lock. That’s broken up so Bryan charges into the corner, only to run into Deep Six for two. Bryan is back up and stomps away while shouting about revenge, setting up the suicide dive. That’s caught by the throat so Bryan kicks him in the knee and the head. Corbin is sick of this and throws a ladder at him for the DQ at 14:55.

Rating: C+. Not a bad match here with Bryan being out for revenge and losing his cool, though I’m still not sure how smart it is to fight bad ratings with a nearly fifteen minute King Corbin match to start the show. I do like the fact that this had a personal issue and wasn’t all about the fabled “building momentum”, so at least they have something new. Just get to the moment where everyone is sitting on a ladder though so we can be done with it.

Post match Bryan isn’t done and grabs the YES Lock on a ladder, only to have Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro come in for the save. Bryan gets thrown off the stage and through a bunch of ladders. Graves: “Could that happen off the roof of WWE Headquarters?” No.

Here’s Braun Strowman for a chat but the Firefly Fun House cuts him off in a hurry. Bray has a story for us about the Black Sheep, who smelled a little funny. The Black Sheep was ready to do everything but the shepard came to get him. Then the government placed a lien on the Sheep’s house and reptilians took over, because that’s what reptilians do. Bray wants to write a happier ending, but Strowman cuts him off and says come say it to his face. Strowman: “BYE!”

Make-A-Wish video.

Sheamus vs. Leon Ruff

Three Irish Curses, ten forearms to the chest, Brogue Kick for the pin at 1:53.

Post match Sheamus yells about Jeff Hardy, leading to the fourth part of the Hardy video series. This focuses on the knee injury from April but doesn’t quite bring up the legal issues while he was gone (to be fair though, those have been covered). Now he’s back and ready for the future. Hardy is back next week. This would be a bit better had he not had that one off match a few months ago.

Back in the arena, Sheamus says he’ll be here next week too.

Otis promises to beat Dolph Ziggler again, for his beautiful peach Mandy Rose. Mandy says she’s had a hard time for the last few weeks and tonight she’s focused on Carmella.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Carmella vs. Mandy Rose

Feeling out profess to start And they dive over each other a bit, setting up a low superkick for two on Mandy. A shot to the face sets up a chinlock on Carmella but here’s Sonya Deville for the distraction. She praises Mandy as the match continues, including Mandy getting two off a side slam.

Last year, Sonya almost handed Mandy the briefcase but Mandy managed to screw it up anyway. Sonya: “How embarrassing! Not nearly as embarrassing as losing to Carmella, which is probably about to happen!” Sonya says she’ll stop talking but then says she’s sick of standing up there and challenges Mandy to a fight right now. The distraction lets Carmella spin Mandy around so she can stand there and get superkicked for the pin at 3:49.

Rating: D+. If ever there was a place for the distraction rollup finish, this was it.. Instead we had Mandy get distracted, get spun around, and then stand there while Carmella superkicked her. That looked terribly fake and while the bigger story is fine, come up with a better way to do it. I do however like Sonya cutting a promo instead of just popping up for the distraction. At least it was a little different.

Post match Sonya sends her into the steps and talks a lot of trash. Sonya’s intensity has been really good, but is a showdown between Fire & Desire that big of a deal?

Post break Mandy has a bruised leg that she is getting checked out. Otis comes in to check on her but the doctor asks him to leave. That’s fine with Otis, who runs into Dolph Ziggler, who asks if Mandy is ok before leaving.

New Day vs. Forgotten Sons

Non-title, Jaxson Ryker is here with the Sons and here are Miz and Morrison to join commentary as the ten person limit is thrown out the window. Big E. throws Cutler down to start so it’s off to Kofi as Miz and Morrison make Tiger King jokes. Are those even still a thing? Kofi hits a running basement dropkick to Blake in the corner as everything breaks down.

Big E. splashes Cutler on the floor and we take a break. Back with a knee dropping Big E. as the Sons take over. A double Rock Bottom backbreaker gets two as Miz and Morrison complain about Cole saying Miz lost while Morrison retained the titles at Wrestlemania. Big E. finally shoves Blake away and the hot tag brings in Kofi to clean house.

A butterfly backbreaker gives Cutler two and everything breaks down. Cutler hits a Backstabber to set up Blake’s top rope elbow for two on Kofi as things settle a bit. Big E. gets sent outside for a posting from Ryker, leaving Kofi to take the reverse DDT/top rope stomp pin at 12:58.

Rating: C-. Yeah they’re still the Forgotten Sons, meaning that they are still as good as they have been before. It’s not a good match but I’ll give them credit for putting someone new in the division. I’ve been asking for it for so long now and saying “yes but not THEM” isn’t the best reaction to have. They’re not awful, but they’re also not that interesting in the slightest.

We look back at Bayley and Sasha Banks having issues last week, plus Tamina superkicking Bayley after the match.

Tamina doesn’t like fake girls pretending around here but here’s Sasha to say Tamina has helped her. It’s a ruse for a Bayley sneak attack though and the beating is on. Lacey Evans makes the save and everything is broken up. Yeah still not caring about Tamina.

Dolph Ziggler and Sonya Deville talk about how he isn’t the bad guy. Fans cheer for Otis because they see themselves in him but guys like Otis don’t win in the end. Eventually, talent is what matters and Ziggler will be Mr. Money in the Bank. Then he’ll be champion and get Mandy back. Sonya: “Sounds like a plan to me.”

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Dolph Ziggler vs. Otis

Otis runs him over to start and hits an early delayed vertical suplex for two. Ziggler gets sent into the corner and slammed down for two, followed by a catapult into the corner again. A trip tot he floor slows Otis down and Ziggler sends him into the barricade. Back from a break with Ziggler still in control, including hitting a dropkick for two. Graves mentions something that might be kind of important: the two ladder matches, with the wrestlers going up through the headquarters, will be taking place AT THE SAME TIME. They’ve hinted at that a few times but I didn’t think they would actually do it.

As I try to get my head around that brilliant idea, Otis fights back but the Caterpillar is broken up with a neck snap across the top. The Zig Zag gets two but Otis throws him down with a suplex. The Caterpillar finishes Ziggler clean at 9:53. Cole: “That is probably the biggest win of Otis’ career.” I know WWE wants you to forget about Wrestlemania but give me a break.

Rating: D+. I think we’ve pretty much hit the peak of Otis’ worth at this point and that’s fine. He got the big win at Wrestlemania and now he can do some spots in Money in the Bank without having a chance of winning. The match wasn’t very good but again, points for trying someone new and having Ziggler lose.

Overall Rating: C-. Recently, I saw someone say that there is almost nothing in the WWE midcard that had any real energy or pop. That was in my head during this show and it’s absolutely right. So many people feel like they’re in a firm bubble and nothing is going to change for them anytime soon. They’re going to do their thing, which comes and goes every week, and nothing feels important. You might get some good matches or stories, but nothing feels like it’s a big deal. That becomes a major issue year after year and it brings shows like this, without much from the main event scene, grinding to a halt.

This show had a focus and a purpose, but it never really felt important. Sheamus vs. Jeff Hardy could be good and they’re adding in some new people, but there is nothing on this show that really made me want to watch. It feels like so many people are firmly in their spots and aren’t going anywhere because they have found their places in WWE. That gets old fast and it has been old for a very long time. Spice it up a little and it can go a long way.

Results

Daniel Bryan b. King Corbin via DQ when Corbin used a ladder

Sheamus b. Leon Ruff – Brogue Kick

Carmella b. Mandy Rose – Superkick

Forgotten Sons b. New Day – Reverse DDT/top rope stomp combination to Kingston

Otis b. Dolph Ziggler – Caterpillar

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

NXT UK – April 30, 2020 (Hidden Gems): And For Once, They Are!

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: April 30, 2020
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Andy Shepard
Host: Tom Phillips

It’s another special edition of the show but this time around it’s something you have seen before. This week’s theme is Hidden Gems, which means we are looking at matches that aired for the live crowd at TV tapings but were filmed for whatever reason. That could make for some interesting footage as it’s all new to us. Let’s get to it.

Tom welcomes us to the show and explains the idea.

From the Download Festival in Derby, England, June 14, 2019.

NXT UK Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Storm is defending and they fight over wristlocks to start. Storm takes her to the mat but Purrazzo headstands out of a headscissors. Purrazzo gets in her own headscissors so Storm slips out as well to give us a standoff. Some uppercuts give Storm one and we hit the half crab. A rope is grabbed in a hurry so Storm kicks her in the chest for two more. Storm misses a charge into the corner though and Purrazzo snaps the arm back for her own two. Purrazzo stomps away in the corner and takes a bow, setting up a modified STF.

The fans ask if Storm will be their girl until Purrazzo quiets them down with another shot to the arm for some near falls. The armbar brings the fans back into it but it’s a Lethal Combination into a Koji Clutch. Back up and they slug it out until Toni rolls some German suplexes. The arm goes out on Storm Zero though, allowing Purrazzo to put on another armbar. Storm gets to the rope for the save so it’s a hard clothesline and a quick Storm Zero to retain at 11:14.

Rating: B-. Storm is someone who can be awesome when she has the right circumstances and she made it work here. The arm work made sense and Storm went with a rush of adrenaline to retain the title in the end. It was also one of Purrazzo’s best performances around here, even though she wouldn’t be in the company by the time it aired.

From Plymouth, England on July 20, 2019.

Matt Riddle vs. Ligero

From a TV taping. Andy: “How do you solve a riddle like the Original Bro?” Tom: “I see what you did there.” The fans chant something I can’t understand as the bigger Riddle goes with the grappling to start. Ligero reverses into a headlock but Riddle powers him up with a belly to back suplex. The chinlock is snapped back on and Ligero slugs away with the forearms.

Riddle powers him down again and starts with the strikes, setting up the running forearms in the corner. A suplex sets up the Broton for two and Riddle is fired up. Riddle grabs a Jackhammer for two but the Floating Bro is countered into a running German superplex. Ligero flips out of a German suplex and they head to the floor with Riddle getting caught with a hurricanrana. A springboard Stunner gives Ligero two back inside and a slingshot splash gets the same. C4L is countered into a powerbomb and it’s the Final Flash into Bro Derek. The Floating Bro finishes Ligero at 8:38.

Rating: C+. I wanted to see more of this as Ligero came to play this time. Ligero can work well with anyone and while I’m still waiting on that big breakout moment from Riddle, he looked good here in a rare instance where he was a good bit bigger than his opponent. Nice match here with both guys putting in a nice performance.

From the Download Festival in Derby, England, June 15, 2019.

NXT Women’s Title: Shayna Baszler vs. Isla Dawn

Shayna is defending and drives her into the corner to start without looking too worried here. Dawn gets a quick one off a rollup and takes out the leg to mess with Shayna’s head. That earns Dawn a headlock so she rolls Baszler up for another two. A suplex sends Baszler outside so Dawn follows but gets sent into the steps.

Back in and Baszler stomps on the arm, setting up the armbar. Baszler hammers away for two and the arm is bent around the top rope. An armbar takedown lets Baszler crank on the arm a little more but Dawn fights up for a running dropkick. A gutwrench faceplant gives Baszler two so she kicks Dawn in the face and grabs the Clutch for the tap at 8:39.

Rating: C. This wasn’t great but I’m not sure who was going to buy Dawn as a threat against Baszler when Dawn has never won anything of note. Baszler is a monster and it takes someone special to beat her, or even challenge her really. It wasn’t bad, but it felt like a long squash.

Ilja Dragunov is keeping his fire going until he finally gets to face Walter for the UK Title. He’s ready to go where no one else ever has and this match will redefine violence.

Next week: the Rise of Imperium. Cool.

From Coventry, England, March 6, 2020.

Ilja Dragunov vs. A-Kid

Kid wrestles him down to start and gets a quick one to set up a standoff. They hit the mat again with Kid tying him up into a bow and arrow. That’s reversed into a chinlock, which is reversed into a headscissors on Dragunov. An exchange of rollups give them two each and Kid slips out of a headscissors for a standoff. Kid headstands into a headscissors on the mat (dang) so Dragunov slips out and says bring it.

Dragunov changes plans and hits him in the face, setting up a crossbody for two more. The top rope elbow to the floor drops Kid again but he’s right back with a German suplex back inside. Kid’s northern lights suplex into an armbar, followed by a quick high crossbody for two. Frustration is setting in so Dragunov BLASTS him with a clothesline.

The 61Line gets two more but Kid kicks him in the arm. Dragunov responds by kicking him in the FACE and a deadlift German suplex gets two. Kid pulls the leg down and twists the ankle so it’s an enziguri with the free leg for the double knockdown. Somehow Kid is back up with a super Spanish Fly for two but Dragunov spinebusters him. Torpedo Moscow finishes Kid at 13:23.

Rating: B+. That’s your perfect example of someone letting it all hang out as Kid gave this everything he had and the match was awesome. It says a lot when I know the result beforehand and still got sucked into the match because they were going that hard. This was awesome and I hope someone important was watching both of them, because it was great stuff.

Overall Rating: A-. Now this was more like it with a heck of a show where they threw wrestling matches out there to fill in their wrestling show. It’s so nice to see that instead of a show with a lot of talking and I’ve been enjoying this (and 205 Live) so much more as a result. WWE has such a deep video library that it makes sense to use it in a time like this. Check this out, especially that main event, if you have time.

Results

Toni Storm b. Deonna Purrazzo – Storm Zero

Matt Riddle b. Ligero – Floating Bro

Shayna Baszler b. Isla Dawn – Kirifuda Clutch

Ilja Dragunov b. A-Kid – Torpedo Moscow

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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