IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: August 12, 2004
Location: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s the go home show for Summerslam and things are mostly set for the pay per view. The big story (if you can call it that) coming out of last week’s show is Orlando Jordan joining forces with JBL, meaning it’s probably time for Jordan to die at Undertaker’s hands. Other than that we’ll be in for some last minute pushes towards the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here are JBL and Orlando Jordan to open things up. After a quick look at the mini Undertaker and Jordan saving JBL last week, JBL paraphrases Richard Nixon by saying that he is not a midget. He’s certainly not intimidated by Undertaker though he’s certainly respectful of what Undertaker has done in WWE. JBL lists off a variety of names that Undertaker has defeated over his career but JBL isn’t on that list.

Undertaker may have few weaknesses, but JBL is going to exploit them at Summerslam. Championships are won in the ring, which is where JBL defies the odds. At Summerslam, JBL will not only remain WWE Champion but defeat the Undertaker. That brings him to Jordan, who is both a great American and JBL’s new Chief of Staff.

Jordan says JBL has taught him that you have to take something you want, which is why he stopped Undertaker last week. Not that JBL needed the help or anything. JBL compares Jordan to the troops overseas and announces that it’s Jordan vs. Undertaker tonight. They’re trying to hide the fact that Jordan is Jordan and it’s not really working.

Spike Dudley vs. Paul London

Non-title. The Dudleys vs. Rey Mysterio/Billy Kidman/London is confirmed for Summerslam. Speaking of the Dudleys, they come out to start things off, complete with Bubba wearing a bandanna for an odd look. London gets sent outside early on and Kidman stares the Dudleys down to prevent violence. Back in and the Dudley Dog is blocked and London kicks him in the face for two. An enziguri drops Spike again but Ray breaks up the 450, allowing Spike to get a rollup for the pin.

Rating: D+. Short angle advancement here as the Dudleys win because of the numbers game. I’m still not sold on Spike as the evil boss but there are worse storylines to get upset about around here. London and Kidman still can’t get away from the Dudleys, which isn’t doing their title reign any favors. Not a terrible match, but it wasn’t exactly designed to be a great one.

Post match the Dudleys beat the champs down.

Cole and Tazz explain the main event, which is called a Summer Games Relay. It’s a six man tag, but the catch is the match is made up of five minute periods. One person each will start for five minutes, then there’s a coin toss. The winning team gets to send in a replacement for five minutes. After that is over, the team that lost the toss gets to send in their replacement for five minutes. They keep alternating every five minutes until there’s a fall. That doesn’t sound bad.

Heidenreich and Paul Heyman will be at Summerslam.

Scotty 2 Hotty asks what’s up with Spike. It’s simple: Spike has just come home to his family and it’s gotten him the Cruiserweight Title. So who needs friends? A slap to the face looks to set up a fight but Bubba and D-Von intervene.

Kurt Angle comes in to Theodore Long’s office to rant about Eddie Guerrero selling his stuff. Long says it was for charity and offers to let Angle call Eddie out tonight. But is Kurt man enough to go out there and do it? Angle says he is, so Teddy tells him to get to steppin.

Chavo Guerrero vs. Nunzio

Nunzio has Johnny the Bull with him. Chavo works on the arm to start but gets taken down into a front facelock. That’s broken up so a Johnny distraction lets Nunzio snap off a hurricanrana. Chavo is fine enough to hit a t-bone suplex but the Gory Bomb is reversed. A rollup with a grab of the ropes gives Chavo two as Johnny breaks it up. Nunzio grabs a rollup of his own for the pin, even though Chavo seemed to get his shoulder up. Nothing special but quite the random filler match.

Undertaker vs. Orlando Jordan

There’s smoke in the ring as a loud TAKER chant starts up. The arm cranking begins but Jordan shoulders away in the corner to break up Old School. Undertaker charges into a boot in the corner and Jordan stomps away. That’s pretty much it for Jordan’s offense as it’s a chokeslam to send him outside. Back in and Old School connects, setting up something like a DDT for two.

The required JBL distraction lets Jordan get in a low blow and a few right hands. Undertaker realizes how bad it looks to sell for this goof and throws Jordan outside again, only to get thrown into the steps. Back in again and the jumping clothesline sets up the running corner clothesline. Snake Eyes connects but JBL comes in for the DQ.

Rating: D-. There’s just no way around it: Jordan is terrible at just about everything he does and having Undertaker sell for him wasn’t a good idea. Undertaker is challenging for the World Title in three days and he’s in trouble against Jordan? There’s a reason that Jordan hasn’t been around in months and this showed just how bad he was. Really bad match and I don’t see it getting any better.

The villains bail and Undertaker sits up for the stare.

Here’s Long to talk about Angle vs. Guerrero at Summerslam. Angle and Guerrero come out with Eddie asking about Angle’s wheelchair and the missing Luther Reigns. Since Angle doesn’t have anywhere to hide, he has to say something to Eddie’s face. Angle says he doesn’t have to hide because he had a legitimate injury. Eddie has no idea what it’s like to have something taken from you like that, but Eddie says that’s what Angle did to him when he stole the WWE Championship.

Angle brings up Eddie stealing his stuff (Eddie: “That was for a good cause!”) and then showing that footage from Wrestlemania where Eddie stole a victory. It’s just a way of hiding the fact that Eddie has to cheat to beat him. Maybe it’s true that Eddie can’t beat him without cheating, maybe he can. That’s what we need to find out on Sunday because Angle can’t hide behind his General Manager position any longer. Maybe Angle doesn’t know if he can beat Eddie either.

Long cuts them off and says that in the spirit of competition, he wants to see a handshake, if they’re man enough that is. They shake hands rather aggressively to end a very good segment. This is a well told story with both guys having a reason to be here. They’ve built it up over several months and I want to see what’s going to be a great match. Sometimes it really is that simple.

Team Cena vs. Team Booker T.

Rob Van Dam, Charlie Haas, John Cena

Booker T., Luther Reigns, Rene Dupree

One fall to a finish with Van Dam and Booker starting. Why it’s not Captain Cena starting isn’t clear but maybe they want to save that showdown for the first of at least three matches at Summerslam. Team Booker already won the toss so they’ll get the first replacement after five minutes. The rules are a little complicated but it sounds fun. Before the match, Cena praises his teammates and likes Jackie’s eyes. Yes eyes.

Booker and Van Dam trade hammerlocks to start with Rob getting the better of an armbar. A hot shot gets Booker out of trouble and the hook kick to the face gets two. The armbar doesn’t get Booker very far so he chops away in the corner. Rob is right back with a loud kick to the head and the step over kick gets two more. There’s a jumping kick to the face and the Five Star but the first period expires, meaning Luther Reigns comes in before the pin. The beatdown is on and we take a break.

Back with Rob throwing some right hands and hitting the springboard kick to the face. Rolling Thunder gets two but Reigns catches him with a spinebuster to end the second period. That means Haas comes into tie Luther’s leg in the ropes and pull on it a bit. A quick crank of the leg and a takedown keeps the leg in trouble but Reigns is right up with a butterfly suplex. Haas gets clotheslined for two and a belly to back gets the same.

Back from another break with Rene working over a beaten down Haas. Rene takes a bit too long going up top though and gets dropkicked out of the air. That and a bridging German suplex give Haas two, followed by more suplexes for more two’s. Booker trips Haas from the floor though and Rene grabs an STF (which might be worse than Cena’s) until time expires. Cena comes in and, after checking on Haas, takes Rene down for some bad right hands to the head. A running neckbreaker out of the corner gets Dupree out of trouble and it’s off to a camel clutch.

Cena breaks up that and a regular chinlock but misses the flying shoulder. The French Tickler wastes some time, but Tazz does get to sing about it which is always a highlight. Another comeback includes the FU attempt but Dupree grabs the rope to kill off the rest of the time. Booker comes in again and hits the hooking kick to the face. A You Can’t See Me knee drop gets two and it’s off to the chinlock. Cena fights up and drops Booker to the floor, with Van Dam getting in a few shots. Tazz declares that not kosher, especially as Cena rolls Booker up for the pin.

Rating: C+. The wrestling wasn’t awesome here but they did have a unique idea and it was perfectly watchable throughout. Cena getting the pin ahead of Sunday is fine, even if that match doesn’t mean anything on that night. It was fun and different though, which is certainly better than watching some of the same stuff over and over again, which happens far too often.

A brawl ends the show.

Overall Rating: D+. It’s a tale of two shows here with the main event working and the JBL/Orlando Jordan stuff being rather awful. There’s not much you can do to get around a lack of talent and WWE doesn’t seem to get that with Jordan. At least there was some other stuff to balance it out, but that’s not exactly enough to make this show work. Angle and Eddie were awesome and that helped a lot, but they couldn’t make up for the rest of the show being pretty lame.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

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

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IMG Credit: WWE

Royal Rumble 2004
Date: January 25, 2004
Location: Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 17,289
Commentators: Jim Ross, Michael Cole, Tazz, Jerry Lawler, Jonathan Coachman

It’s a big night and one of the most important shows of the year as we officially start the Road to Wrestlemania. The Royal Rumble is more wide open than in recent years and that’s often the best thing that can happen for the match. Other than that we have a pair of World Title matches, with Raw’s likely being too long and Smackdown’s needing to move on before the company makes itself look worse. Let’s get to it.

The opening video talks about how life’s road is unpredictable and how one turn can change everything. As you might guess, the Last Man Standing match gets the most time and the Rumble itself is mentioned last.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Dudley Boyz vs. Ric Flair/Batista

Flair and Batista are defending and it’s a tables match with Coach on commentary. Before the match, Batista gets in a quick jab at the Dudleys for being the biggest losers since the Philadelphia Eagles. They fight on the floor to start with Batista clotheslining the post by mistake to put the champs in early trouble. In a painful looking impact, Bubba slides a table from one side of the ring to the other, hitting Batista in the ribs to keep him in trouble.

A neckbreaker slows Batista down and D-Von takes him to the floor with a Cactus Clothesline. Flair has Bubba in the corner on a table (that’s so wrong for Flair) but Bubba is right back with the Flip Flop and Fly (that’s more Flair’s speed) Batista comes back in for the save though as I’m glad they’re not wasting time with tags here.

The belly to back suplex/neckbreaker combination puts Batista down as Evolution can’t get much going here. Flair goes up, and in a shocking change of events, Flair gets slammed down. It’s time for the table but cue Coach, with his bad ribs, for the save. That earns him a What’s Up attempt but Flair makes a save of his own. Batista is back in with a spinebuster to put D-Von through a table for the win.

Rating: D-. Just a Raw match designed to get these guys on the show, though I can appreciate them putting the tables match on first and hopefully we don’t get a bunch of chants about wanting tables. Other than that, I see nothing positive about this entire thing. Batista and Flair are fine as champions, but it’s not like they have anyone important to feud against at this point.

Flair says they’ll keep the titles as long as they want.

John Cena raps about how he’s going to win but Rob Van Dam comes in to steal the last rhyme, saying he’ll win the Rumble. Cena makes weed jokes and says Van Dam can suck his candy cane.

There’s an empty chair for Mick Foley, should he bother to show up.

Cruiserweight Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Jamie Noble

Rey is defending and Jamie has the still blind Nidia with him. A 619 attempt in the first ten seconds is countered into a hot shot as Jamie takes over. Cole says that Nidia, who is blind, is looking on as Jamie hiptosses Rey down, earning one heck of a tongue lashing from Tazz. Rey gets in a dropkick and a hurricanrana, followed by the sitout bulldog for two. The tiger driver is broken up and Nidia trips Jamie by mistake, setting up the 619. Rey Drops the Dime to retain in short order.

Rating: D. Well don’t bother wasting time I guess. This was barely three minutes long and they didn’t have time to do anything. Nidia’s interference was the most important part of the match and that took all of two seconds. These two are talented but they need more time than a run of the mill women’s match from this era to get anywhere.

We recap Eddie Guerrero vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr. They were a successful team but Eddie got way more popular, sending Chavo into a jealous rage when the team stopped doing as well. Chavo went nuts, blaming Eddie for all of their problems and bringing in his father to turn it into more of a family affair, even as Kurt Angle tried to play peacekeeper. This is one of the few stories that is going to work every single time and both of them have sold it exceptionally well, turning it into the best thing going on in WWE at the moment.

Eddie Guerrero vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Chavo has his father with him. They fight over a hard lockup to start until Chavo slaps the taste out of Eddie’s mouth. A fired up Eddie shoves him into the corner but can’t bring himself to follow up because his heart is broken. He’s willing to take Chavo down into a chinlock but Chavo is right back up for a chop in the corner. Eddie chops him back and gives the first smile of the match. Some shoulders put Eddie down and Chavo is very pleased with his early success.

That just earns him a poke to the eye as the stalling continues. Eddie takes him down again but Chavo pops up in short order and hooks a hurricanrana to put them both on the floor. With Chavo back inside, his dad sends Eddie face first into the steps (Tazz: “I guess he doesn’t like his little brother.”) to give Chavo the first real advantage. Back in and Eddie grabs a cross armbreaker but can’t get it all the way on. Chavo scores with a belly to back suplex but the tornado DDT is broken up. Eddie rolls the suplexes and drops the frog splash for the win.

Rating: C. It was good while it lasted but it should have lasted about twice as long. This was a big time story on Smackdown and it ended in a match that was about half as long as the Smackdown main event. I’m assuming they’re setting Eddie up for something bigger down the line and they needed to get this out of the way, but this deserved more time.

Post match Eddie gets fired up for the first time and beats up both Chavos. Sr. gets tied to the bottom rope by the tie while Jr. gets stomped in the corner, busting him open in the process. They did a good job here with Eddie wanting to hold in his emotions during the match but being pushed too far after and finally erupting.

Chris Benoit is ready to go in at #1 when Evolution comes in with their champagne to celebrate. Flair says Benoit is the best technical wrestler alive and all man but the brass ring always slips out of his hand. It’s all about Evolution holding all of the gold so Benoit is always going to be second best.

We recap the Smackdown World Title match with Brock Lesnar defending against Hardcore Holly. Lesnar broke Holly’s neck back in 2002 and since we must go with real life instead of something, you know, interesting, we’ve been stuck watching Lesnar run from Holly for the last month. This is possibly the most ice cold title match in history as Holly is little more than a former comedy guy with a bad attitude who is ranting about wanting to break Lesnar’s neck. Lesnar can beat up Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit, but Hardcore Holly suddenly scares him? That’s what we’re going with here?

Smackdown World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Hardcore Holly

Lesnar is defending and Holly jumps him before the bell. The champ gets posted twice in a row and the bell rings with Holly on the apron, only to miss a top rope clothesline. Lesnar scores with a suplex as the referee is getting in the way more than usual here. A ram into the apron gives Lesnar two and it’s off to a waistlock on the mat. What would eventually be called a Shell Shock gives Lesnar two as this is a complete squash so far.

It’s back to the waistlock as you can hear the limited interest the fans had seeping out of the arena. A bearhug sets up a suplex and it’s right back to a head and arm choke. Holly fights up with some kicks to the ribs and clotheslines, followed by the Alabama Slam….for no cover as it’s off to that stupid full nelson. The hold stays on even as they fall to the floor so Holly tries it again with Lesnar on the apron. That earns him a neck snap across the top and the F5 retains the title.

Rating: F. Oh give me a break. Lesnar was never in danger here and in the six and a half minutes they had, at least half of it was Lesnar keeping him on the mat in a hold. Holly’s finisher, while fine for beating a midcarder here and there, is nowhere near enough to be a real threat to Lesnar. Thank goodness they didn’t tease a bunch of near falls and just got out of there, because this was a bad idea from the beginning.

We’re not even 52 minutes into the show and we’ve covered four matches, including three title matches. That’s a ridiculous pace, even for a Royal Rumble.

We recap Shawn Michaels vs. HHH, which they’re billing as seven years in the making. So we’re counting all of the four and a half years Shawn was on the shelf and the months long feud they had in 2002? They’ve traded wins and the title until Shawn got a pin on the last show of 2003, albeit with his own shoulders on the mat. Therefore it’s a Last Man Standing match tonight, which somehow ties into everything else they’ve ever done, including the most recent match, which is barely discussed.

Raw World Title: HHH vs. Shawn Michaels

HHH is defending and it’s Last Man Standing. They fight over a lockup to start until Shawn gets the better of a chop off. It’s time for a mat sequence with Shawn loading up a backslide, only to let it go when he realizes what kind of match they’re having. One heck of a whip into the corner starts n on Shawn’s back, which is still a target six years after it was originally hurt.

Shawn is right back up with a Figure Four but HHH turns it over for the break. That’s enough of the wrestling so it’s time to head outside with HHH loading up the announcers’ table. A suplex through the table is broken up and Shawn ax handles him in the head. Back in and a backdrop puts HHH on the floor again but Shawn’s springboard spinning crossbody only hits table in a big crash.

Shawn is busted open (of course he is) and we get a replay, showing that Shawn would have cleared HHH by two feet even if HHH had stood in place. Back in again and the very bloody Shawn won’t stay down, instead telling HHH to bring it on. Right hands get a seven and a spinebuster gives HHH eight more. It’s chair time and a hard shot to the back gets nine this time. The Pedigree on the chair is countered into a slingshot into the corner, followed by Shawn’s own chair shot to the face.

Back up and the forearm into the nip up have the bloody HHH in trouble. The top rope elbow looks to set up Sweet Chin Music but HHH cuts him off with a low blow. Back up and Shawn grabs a sleeper, which lasts as long as a sleeper is going to in a match like this. HHH’s DDT gets eight so he loads up a belly to back superplex, which is countered into a spinning crossbody for a double knockdown. The Pedigree gets nine and Shawn hits Sweet Chin Music, good for a double knockout and a draw.

Rating: C-. Well of course we need to see these two fight again. You wouldn’t expect HHH and Shawn Michaels to wrap up their feud in just two matches right? This wasn’t very good with just an exchange of moves and nothing that went anywhere, though the blade jobs were both quite nasty looking. I’m sure we’ll see these two again, but these two will likely be fighting in their retirement home.

The fans are NOT pleased with the draw and I can’t say I blame them. HHH is taken out on a stretcher but Shawn insists on walking.

Video on the Royal Rumble, which really just shows the names involved. Chris Benoit is in at #1 and Goldberg is in at #30.

The Fink is ready to start the introductions but here’s Eric Bischoff to promise that Raw will win the match. He runs down Paul Heyman’s abilities to run shows in Bingo halls, in a line that has to have been repeated a thousand times now. Ignore that WCW officially went out of business before ECW (on an extreme technicality but it was still officially in business after WCW was purchased). Heyman tackles Bischoff but here’s Steve Austin on the ATV to say they’re both in violation of the law. Stunners abound and beer is consumed. I’m so glad they spent five minutes on this when four matches got less than twenty two minutes combined.

Goldberg is asked about being #30 in the Royal Rumble when Brock comes in to wonder where his interview is. Brock asks where Goldberg’s title is but Goldberg says it’s coming back at Wrestlemania. Goldberg suggests Brock is a coward.

Foley still isn’t here.

Royal Rumble

JR and Tazz are on commentary, thankfully giving us a standard booth instead of the usual mess that these things have become. Tazz even has keys to victory: hide, stamina, get a high number. I’ve heard worse analysis so I’ll take what I can get. Chris Benoit is in at #1 and Randy Orton is in at #2 and we have ninety second intervals. Benoit gets aggressive to start (ignoring key to victory #2) and scores with a suplex but gets uppercutted into the corner.

Mark Henry is in at #3 and shoves Benoit down so he can choke Orton in the corner. The clock seems to get a little faster as Tajiri is in at #4 and gets suplexed down for his efforts. Henry throws Orton ribs first onto the top rope and everyone pounds away as Bradshaw is in at #5. Clotheslines abound until Benoit pulls him into the Crossface and gets him out in less than a minute. Well at least they’re keeping the ring at a manageable number. Rhyno is in at #6 and goes after Orton and Benoit as Tajiri kicks away at Henry.

Tajiri can’t get the Tarantula so Rhyno Gores Henry, eliminating Tajiri in the process. Benoit dumps Henry and we’re already down to three. They fight by the ropes and it’s Matt Hardy in at #7. There’s a Side Effect to Rhyno but Benoit knocks Matt to the apron. Matt gets back in and everyone pummels everyone until Scott Steiner is in at #8. Benoit rolls some German suplexes on Steiner as JR gives us the good stat of there being no former Rumble winners in this match.

Matt Morgan is in at #9 as the ring is starting to fill up. A helicopter bomb plants Benoit and there’s a big boot to Hardy. It’s back to the exchange of forearms around the ring with no one going for an elimination until Hurricane is in at #10. Before I can recap who is in the match, Morgan tosses Hurricane in short order, leaving us with Benoit, Orton, Rhyno, Hardy, Steiner and Morgan. Morgan throws Hardy to the apron but not out as Steiner lays on Orton in the middle of the ring.

Booker T. is in at #11 to a nice reaction but also to a really annoying song. An ax kick has Orton in trouble and Steiner is thrown out off camera (in his last match with the company) as Kane is in at #12. Benoit and Morgan both get chokeslams and the Gore and RKO are both blocked. Kane starts beating on Matt in the corner…..and a gong strikes at #13. As expected, Kane freaks out and the distraction lets Booker throw him out. It’s actually Spike Dudley in at #13 so Kane beats him up in the aisle, both for the gong and for Spike upsetting Kane on Monday. Things settle down and it’s Rikishi in at #14.

Benoit dumps Rhyno and Orton gets a Stinkface as the fans aren’t exactly interested, probably due to the gong taking some of their interest away. They’re certainly not burning up the pace for eliminations here but that’s not the worst thing in the world. Rene Dupree is in at #15 to get us to the halfway point. He dropkicks Hardy out but turns into a superkick from Rikishi to get eliminated as well.

A-Tran is in at #16 and goes after Rikishi as Benoit ducks Morgan’s charge to get rid of him. Orton dumps out Rikishi and Booker in the span of a few seconds, leaving us with Benoit, Orton and A-Train. Benoit eliminates A-Train as Shelton Benjamin is in at #17. Benjamin slugs away as JR completely missed A-Train’s elimination. How do you not notice the 6’8 350lb bald guy being gone? Orton dumps Shelton and we’re down to two again. To be fair, other than Kane and maybe Booker, none of the other entrants are worth anything so far. Lamont runs out to introduce Ernest Miller at #18 and Tazz loves the song.

Benoit tosses Lamont and Orton does the same to Miller so these two can keep slugging it out. Kurt Angle is in at #19 and now things can pick up a bit. Benoit and Angle go at it (of course) while Orton is smart enough to just chill in the corner. Angle has Benoit in trouble on the ropes but Orton makes a rather questionable save. Rico is in at #20 and goes after Orton, who dropkicks him almost immediately. A kick to the head rocks Orton though, leaving Benoit to roll some German suplexes on Angle. Orton dumps Rico with ease and it’s Test…..not in at #21.

We cut to the back where Test is unconscious. Austin sees who did it and makes that person #21 instead. In the arena, MICK FOLEY is #21 and Orton knows he’s about to die. Foley slugs him down in the corner, throws up a BANG BANG and hits the running knee in the corner. The Cactus Clothesline gives us a double elimination and it’s down to Benoit vs. Angle. Foley isn’t done with Orton and sends him into the steps as Christian is in at #22.

Orton gets in a few wicked chair shots to Foley and punches him down before slamming Foley’s head into the ramp. Some right hands get Foley out of trouble and it’s Mr. Socko but Foley has to give it to Nunzio, who comes in at #23. The distraction lets Orton get in a low blow and run off after a great angle that makes me want to see these two have a heck of a fight. Back in the ring, Christian can’t get rid of Angle or Benoit so Angle suplexes Benoit instead. Benoit is the only one standing as Big Show is in at #24.

Show starts fast with the overhand chops and throws some Canadians around until Chris Jericho is in at #25 to a very nice reaction. Jericho and Christian stomp on Angle in the corner until Show makes a save with a double noggin knocker. How old school of him. Everyone goes after Show so he shrugs them off and Charlie Haas is in at #26. Christian tries to turn on Jericho but gets dumped out instead, which just fits for Christian for some reason. Billy Gunn returns at #27 and hits some Fameassers but can’t get rid of anyone.

John Cena is in at #28 to a very nice reaction and you can feel the star power growing every night. Cena catches Nunzio sitting on the floor and throws him inside as the ring is starting to get too full. For some reason Nunzio goes after Show, earning himself that hard shot to the back. Rob Van Dam is in at #29 and can’t get rid of Show either. Cena gives Angle an FU and here’s Goldberg in at #30 to complete the field. I’m not going to bother saying who all is in there because we’re about to lose a bunch of them.

Goldberg wrecks everyone and tosses Haas, Gunn and Nunzio (after an insane spear). That leaves us with Benoit, Angle, Show, Jericho, Cena, Van Dam and Goldberg for a heck of a final group. Goldberg loads up the Jackhammer on Show but here’s Lesnar to jump him from behind, allowing Angle to dump Goldberg, who is busy seething at Lesnar. Show shrugs off the masses again but Angle chop blocks him, which isn’t the brightest idea. That means a Lionsault, a Five Star, a Shuffle and a Swan Dive but Show is unconscious on the mat. Real smart guys.

Show fights up and dumps Cena, who lands VERY awkwardly on his knee. Van Dam is gone too and we’re down to Jericho, Big Show, Angle and Benoit. Jericho goes after Show’s knee and bulldogs Show now, which has done so well against him already. The Walls make Show tap but Jericho lets him go. That’s not the brightest move in the world and Show makes him pay with a chokeslam over the top for an elimination. A regular chokeslam drops Benoit so Angle gets the Angle Slam on Show.

Benoit gets one as well and now it’s the ankle lock to make Show tap again. Show gets up and muscles Angle out as well, leaving us with two. With Show hanging over the top rope, Benoit hits the Swan Dive to the back of his head, accidentally bringing Show back in. The chokeslam is countered into the Crossface to make Show tap for the third time.

A side slam gets Show out of trouble as we hear about Benoit getting close to Ric Flair’s longevity record. Show loads up a gorilla press but Benoit pulls him down into a guillotine, even as Show puts him on the apron. Benoit pulls him down and slides back inside as Show goes out, giving Benoit the big win.

Rating: A. It’s one of the best Rumbles ever, mainly due to Benoit. There was some great storytelling near the end, with Jericho and Angle both making Show tap but then making some kind of a mistake to get eliminated while Benoit was smart/determined enough to make it work in the end. The same thing happens when the big groups try to get Show out and Benoit does it on his own, showing how technique and determination are better than brute strength. It kept you wondering if Benoit could finally win the big one and that’s what they managed to pull off in a great story throughout the whole match.

Other than that, they did a great job of not letting the ring get too full save for near the end, which Goldberg took care of in short order. Pacing is often such a problem in these things and it’s very nice to see them get it right. They had a big angle with Foley and Orton too, giving it something besides the winner to go off of from here. Finally, there were multiple possible winners, which always makes for a better match than having one or two people be the only ones who could win. Great Rumble, and one of the best of all time.

JR loses it praising Benoit, who smiles (a rare thing for him) to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. The Rumble is always a unique show as it’s the only one where one match can really save the whole thing, as the main event is often at least a third of the show. The problem is the rest of the show was so bad due to the matches either being rushed or being HHH vs. Shawn in their annual attempt at an epic match that it’s hard to call this good overall. Really though, the Rumble itself is more than enough to carry it, but on any other card of the year this would have been a disaster.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/01/23/royal-rumble-count-up-2004-he-who-must-not-be-named/

And the 2013 redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/01/18/royal-rumble-count-up-2013-redo-2004-they-couldnt-wait-any-longer/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Takeover: Blackpool
Date: January 12, 2019
Location: Empress Ballroom, Blackpool, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

I’m not sure what to think about this. First of all, it’s cool that NXT UK is starting to do something like this. You can only go so far with a TV show and nothing else so having a special like this helps. At the same time though, NXT was down in Full Sail for nearly two years before its first Network special. It hasn’t even been three months since NXT UK TV debuted. I hope they’re ready so let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at the path to this event, with the first event taking place in this very building. Each match gets a quick preview.

The announcers, actually in the arena for a change, run down the card.

Tag Team Titles: Moustache Mountain vs. Zack Gibson/James Drake

For the inaugural titles. Moustache Mountain have some British Bulldogs inspired tights for the very nice touch. We see the rather pretty belts for the first time, which is always a nice feeling. Gibson and Bate start things off and the fans are already singing for Bate. An early armbar takes Bate down and it’s time to take the shoes off in hatred of Gibson. Bate gets taken down in a test of strength and bridges up until he backflips out of it in a very unique escape.

Drake and Seven come in so it’s time to drum up a new song. A quick fireman’s carry slam sets up Bate’s middle rope cannonball so it’s back to Gibson, who bails to the floor. Back in and a hurricanrana keeps Gibson in trouble, followed by Seven hitting a crossbody for two. Drake comes in sans tag for a distraction and heads outside, where a suicide dive hurts Seven’s arm. The slowed down Seven gets taken down by a Gibson clothesline and the villains take over.

Drake grabs an arm trap chinlock (Seven: “OW MY ARM!”) and then hits a discus elbow, which actually busts the back of Seven’s head open. Gibson, who the fans still hate, grabs a chinlock of his own as Seven still can’t get out of trouble. Seven and Drake head outside where Seven’s chops don’t have much effect but once back inside, he’s able to drive into the corner for the tag to Bate in a hurry. That was a different kind of hot tag and that’s greatly appreciated.

Bate picks up the pace with a middle rope back elbow to Gibson, followed by an airplane spin to both of them AT THE SAME TIME. I know I say this every time but EGADS that’s impressive. Gibson and Drake head outside so Bate hits a shooting star off the apron for the double knockdown. Bop and Bang hit Gibson and it’s back to Seven for a suplex into the Swan Dive for two. Gibson kicks Seven in the knee and brings Drake back in for a pinfall reversal sequence.

Everything breaks down again and the dragon suplex/clothesline combination is broken up with Gibson’s Ticket To Ride. Helter Skelter into a 450 gets a very close two on Seven and the fans are back into it. Gibson gets the Shankley Gates on Seven and Drake puts another one on Bate at the same time. Just because he can, Bate powers up into a Death Valley Driver to sent Drake into Gibson and Seven for the save.

Bate comes back in and starts throwing the good looking boxing punches. The half dragon suplex/clothesline combination gets two on Drake and the fans aren’t sure what to do now. Bate gets knocked off the apron and onto Gibson’s shoulders, setting up a suicide dive Doomsday Device on the floor to knock Bate cold. Back in and Ticket to Mayhem gives Drake the pin and the titles at 23:52.

Rating: B+. Very good opener and exactly how the finish should have gone. Moustache Mountain are the most over people on the roster not named Pete Dunne and they don’t need to win here to keep that spot. Gibson and Drake are awesome together and it makes a lot more sense to give them the titles to bring them up to the next level. Therefore, when Moustache Mountain, or whoever it is, takes the titles from them, it means that much more. Really intense match here and an awesome opening match.

Johnny Saint and Sid Scala come out to congratulate the new champs.

Earlier today, Jordan Devlin attacked Travis Banks and injured his knee. Banks is still medically cleared.

Travis Banks vs. Jordan Devlin

Banks has a bad knee but he’s fine enough to dive onto Devlin before the bell. Devlin gets in a whip into the steps though and the knee is crushed into the steel over and over. Referees and Scala come out to break it up and it doesn’t look like there’s a match here. Devlin grabs the mic and says he’s the greatest Irish wrestler alive. Hang on though as Scala says there’s a backup plan as they thought Devlin might try something like this.

Finn Balor vs. Jordan Devlin

This is a special one as Balor trained Devlin. They stare each other down and the scared looking Devlin slaps him in the face, earning himself a Sling Blade. It’s way too early for the Coup de Grace as Devlin bails out to the floor. Devlin gets in a shot outside and hits his own jumping double stomp back inside.

Balor is right back with a basement dropkick but a regular version breaks up another Coup de Grace attempt. Back in and Devlin pounds away so Balor chops the skin off his chest. 1916 is blocked with an enziguri so Balor hits him with the Pele for a double knockdown. Another attempt works just fine but Devlin gets up again.

The arm pull into the hard belly to back gives Devlin two of his own. Some shots to the ribs keep Balor in trouble until he knocks Devlin outside. That means the running kick to the chest but Devlin posts him for two with feet on the ropes. A moonsault hits raised knees though and it’s an inverted DDT to knock Devlin silly, followed by the running corner dropkick. Now the Coup de Grace connects to give Balor the pin at 11:46.

Rating: B. That’s exactly what it needed to be as you don’t have Devlin beat a former World Champion. At the same time, there’s no shame in losing to someone that far above you and Devlin got in a lot of offense. Balor was a great choice for the replacement and that’s one of the places where WWE shines. One of the wrestlers on your regional minor league show is hurt? Here’s a former World Champion, who happens to be the opponent’s trainer, as a replacement.

Luke Menzies is here.

We recap Dave Mastiff vs. Eddie Dennis. They’re the two monsters of NXT and Mastiff beat Dennis in their first match. Dennis then attacked him to set up a rematch, which went to a double DQ. That’s kind of a weird way to set up a third match but it could be fun.

Eddie Dennis vs. Dave Mastiff

No DQ. They go straight for the slugout to start with Mastiff hitting a crossbody for the first knockdown. Since it’s anything goes they head outside with Mastiff running him over again and loading up the steps and sending them inside for some fun. Dennis finds a kendo stick though and cracks Mastiff over the back to take over. A Russian legsweep with the stick gets two and it’s time to choke with said stick.

Another big swing is blocked though and Mastiff hits a headbutt (CRACK) to rock Dennis. Mastiff powerbombs him down and loads up the steps but another crossbody is countered into a spinning Rock Bottom (with Dennis’ legs shaking) onto the steel for another two. Dennis brings in a chair but walks into a Regal Roll.

For some reason Dave goes up top though and that means the release Severn Bridge for a rather close near fall. A table is set up in the corner but Mastiff knocks him down and sits on Dennis’ chest. Another Regal Roll on the floor sets up a backsplash as Dennis is mostly dead. Back in and Dennis gets two off the reverse inverted DDT as reality is setting in. Severn Bridge through the table is broken up and Mastiff Cannonballs him through it instead for the pin at 11:53.

Rating: B-. Perfectly watchable power brawl with weapons, though it’s nothing that hasn’t been done before. Mastiff remaining undefeated is the right call and you could put him forward for a one off title shot at some point. I still like Dennis a lot and that kind of look and imposing presence is going to keep him around for a good while.

Kay Lee Ray and Jazzy Gabert are here.

We recap Rhea Ripley vs. Toni Storm. Ripley won the inaugural Women’s Title by beating an injured Storm and there really isn’t any other real competition for her. Storm is healthy and focused now after winning the Mae Young Classic. They’re both prodigies and this could be a heck of a match, or at least a major preview of the future.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Rhea Ripley

Ripley is defending. Storm goes after her to start and starts firing off the forearms until a faceplant cuts her off. That’s fine with Storm who hammers away even more, setting up a suicide dive onto a bailing Ripley. They don’t head inside just yet though and Ripley kicks her back first into the barricade. Back in and Ripley stomps away as the loud fans continue to be split.

The bodyscissors stays on the weakened ribs and a delayed vertical suplex gets two. A pair of legdrops gives the champ two but the trash talking lets Storm headbutt her for a double knockdown. The slugout goes to Storm and she rolls some German suplexes but Storm Zero is countered. So is Riptide and they go into a pinfall reversal sequence for two each.

Ripley gets the standing Texas Cloverleaf but gets reversed into the hip attack in the corner. Storm gets frustrated at the kickout and gets caught with Riptide for two, giving us Ripley’s great stunned face. A headbutt lets Storm Zero connect for two and they’re both down again. Storm slugs away with forearms and another Storm Zero gives her the pin and the title at 14:49.

Rating: B-. Kind of a flat and out of nowhere finish as they didn’t really build off the near fall from the first Storm Zero. Storm winning the title so soon after Ripley won it for the first time is a bit of a surprise but you can’t go wrong with either of them as the champion. Tyler Bate winning the inaugural title and dropping it to Dunne has gone just fine and Storm is going to be perfectly fine with the title, as is Ripley without it.

We recap Pete Dunne vs. Joe Coffey. Dunne has been champion for over 600 days, having won the title back in May 2017. He’s beaten everyone who has come close to him though Coffey is a big strong guy who could knock Dunne’s head off. Coffey isn’t the biggest star but he’s been built up well over the last few weeks.

United Kingdom Title: Joe Coffey vs. Pete Dunne

Dunne is defending and Mark Coffey and Wolfgang head to the back in a bit of a surprise. During the entrances, Vic says Dunne’s 603 day reign is the longest since the beginning of Hulkamania. Not even close but we’ll go with that for a better story than the Glamour Girls holding the WWF Women’s Team Titles for 906 days. Aggressive feeling out process to start with Coffey shrugging off a forearm to the face. Some finger bending has Coffey in trouble but he knocks Dunne away without much effort.

The discus lariat misses so Dunne runs him over and tries a not great looking Regal Stretch. Dunne switches to an armbar and, after hitting five straight knees to get out of a vertical suplex, switches to another armbar on the other arm. That’s broken up as well so Coffey throws him outside with Dunne hitting his face on the apron. Dunne enziguris him but gets slammed onto the ramp for the double knockdown. Back in and Coffey gets two off a sidewalk slam We hit the bearhug on Dunne with an overhead belly to belly keeping him down.

Dunne is fine enough for another enziguri and he flips out of a German suplex for a little showing off. Coffey gets sent outside for a middle rope moonsault and they’re both down again. Back in and the X Plex gives Dunne two but a running headbutt to the back sends him into the cover. A powerbomb gets two on the champ and the fans didn’t exactly react to the kickout. Coffey goes with the Boston crab and Dunne, after nearly looking out, dives for the rope for a break.

Back up and they trade headbutts for yet another double knockdown. Coffey shrugs off a German suplex so Dunne takes him down into a Koji Clutch. That’s broken up with raw power so Dunne knees him in the head and punches him out of the air on another spinning crossbody attempt. The Bitter End gets two so Coffey takes him to the apron for a Batista Bomb and they’re both dead on the floor. Dunne gets back in but looks a bit scared so they go with an exchange of kicks to the head.

The stomps to the fingers have Coffey in trouble but the discus lariat takes Dunne down for two more. Coffey tries it again but gets pulled down into the finger spreading. That’s lifted into a buckle bomb which doesn’t break the hold, so it’s a swinging superbomb to really break things up. Coffey can’t cover though and they both pull themselves up in the corners. The slugout is on again with Dunne getting the better of it and Coffey being out on his feet against the ropes.

Coffey snaps off a German suplex out of the corner for two more and just unloads with right hands to the back of the head. For some reason Coffey tries his own Bitter End but gets countered into another DDT. Dunne hits another one of his own but Coffey rolls away before the delayed cover. Coffey takes him to the top and brings Dunne up with him, only to fall back to the floor in what I think was a botch. Whether it was or not, I don’t remember the last time I saw a spot that made me gasp like that.

He’s fine though and snaps off a reverse slam for two more back inside. They head up top again and this time dive off and into the barricade for what I’m assuming they were trying to do the first time. Back in and another Bitter End gives Dunne two so he grabs a triangle and cranks on the fingers for the tap at 34:48.

Rating: A-. They got a little ridiculous with the kickouts at the end but this felt epic for the most part. At one point the fans were chanting ARE YOU WATCHING VINCE MCMAHON, which sums up how the match should be treated. It was a big time match and while I wasn’t quite sold on Coffey as a serious challenger, there were a few times where they had me believing that they would pull the trigger on an upset. That takes some special work and it was an awesome match. A bit too long with a few too many kickouts, but still an excellent main event for the first Takeover. But who in the heck is supposed to beat Dunne?

Dunne poses…..and here’s Walter (a massive Austrian with some crazy hard chops). So that’s who beats Dunne. Coffey tries to get back in and is kicked square in the face for his efforts. The big staredown ends the show. They had to bring in someone new as there’s no one on the show who is beating Dunne and Walter is as perfect of a choice as they could have made. Yeah Dunne has beaten everyone, but imagine the monster that he can’t beat. That’s where Walter comes in and he’s rather awesome for something like this.

Overall Rating: A. As usual the show is good and in this case they have the classic main event to put it over the top. Nothing on here was anywhere close to bad and they had some historic moments, with Walter’s debut being the highlight. He just comes off like a great monster and that’s the kind of person who needs to take Dunne down. It’s a great show and worth seeing, with the one hour a week of the show being a much better choice than what they’ve been doing. Check this one out as it’s an awesome time.

There’s currently no new show listed on the Network for Wednesday so they might be taking the week off.

Results

Zack Gibson/James Drake b. Moustache Mountain – Ticket To Mayhem to Seven

Finn Balor b. Jordan Devlin – Coup de Grace

Dave Mastiff b. Eddie Dennis – Cannonball through a table

Toni Storm b. Rhea Ripley – Storm Zero

Pete Dunne b. Joe Coffey – Triangle choke with finger spreading

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Your tastes may vary here as what you might think is a good finisher could be a little different from everyone elses. My biggest criteria is does it actually finish things. There are some moves that are used time after time to put someone away, and that doesn’t exactly scream finisher to me. These are the better moves and the most devastating, in one way or another.

Phenomenal Forearm – AJ Styles

You don’t hold a title for over a year without a good finisher. This was a middle of the card move for AJ back in TNA and it’s the kind of thing that works very well for someone like him. It looks like someone flying like a superhero and that’s a great way to go with Styles. The move looks awesome, can be hit on anyone, and has piled up a ton of wins. That works for me, which is kind of the point here.

One Winged Angel – Kenny Omega

Sure we can get some Japan in here. Not only does this move has a great name, but it’s the kind of move that actually finishes a match. No one has ever kicked out of it in New Japan and given how many finishers it takes to win a big match over there, that’s quite the record to hold. The great name makes it that much better, which is saying a lot given how devastating it looks.

630 Splash – Ricochet

Ricochet is one of the best high fliers of all time, which you have to expect from a Kentucky boy. This is one of the flippiest flips in a world of flippy flips and Ricochet makes it look effortless. The thing comes off fast and hard, which makes it all the more impactful. Ricochet can fly a lot but this is his big one, as he doesn’t bust out the double moonsault all that often. He wrestles like a superhero (a popular idea) and this looks like a superhero move, making it a great fit.

Claymore – Drew McIntyre

As Bobby Heenan said of the Mafia Kick: “HE KICKED THE MAN IN THE HEAD!” That’s the simple idea of the Claymore, yet it’s one of the best finishers around. Drew McIntyre is a star both in the making and at the moment and that’s one of the best finishers he could have. His size and power makes the move look even better and when he hits it full blast, no one is kicking out of the thing.

Super Collider – AOP

Sure let’s throw in a tag finisher too. The AOP (still can’t believe they changed the name like that) are a couple of monsters who can hit each people really hard. What better finisher to give them than something where they pick people up, ram them together and slam them down? The move is especially devastating on jobbers, which is where the AOP specialize. It’s certainly better than the Last Chapter, which felt like something an old midcard NWA team would have used.

054 – Mustafa Ali

A lot of people can do a 450, but how many people can actually do the thing backwards? I mean, that’s just not normal. Ali has been the heart and soul of 205 Live for a long time now and the fact that he’s already getting to be a big deal on Smackdown makes me very happy. One day he’s going to win a huge match with that thing and it’s going to be a cool moment. The wrestler makes the move most of the time, but in this case it’s a little bit of both.

But then, there’s only way to finish this.

Black Mass – Aleister Black

I really love this move because it’s almost everything put together. Not only is it devastating and can be used on anyone, but it’s the kind of thing that looks tailor made for Black. He has the kickboxing background and strikes all the time, but this is the kind of move that looks like the big finale of everything he does leading up to it. It wouldn’t work for everyone but when Black does it, my goodness it’s something great. I could watch him kick people’s heads off for a long time and it’s earned the top spot here.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

It’s the beginning of a new year and that means it’s time for one thing: me to take way too long to put up my Best Of 2018 awards. This year the plan is to put up two a day for the next ten days (or less if I change my mind about some of the categories). Note that the options here are based on what I’ve seen, so if I left off something the likelihood is that I didn’t see it or didn’t see enough of it to have a strong opinion (read as: most New Japan/indy stuff). As usual, I’ll list off the runners up in no particular order and then the winner. Hopefully these are a bit better than my previous efforts so let’s get to it.

Now this is something that is always interesting because they’re the things that make wrestling go round. Without the storylines that make things work, the wrestling is just a bunch of people having matches for the sake of action. A story doesn’t have to be big, but without a good one the shows don’t work all that well. The big stories were kind of lacking in 2018, but there were some awesome options.

She’s The Man

We’ll start with the hottest thing in the company at the moment: the rise of Becky Lynch. This isn’t something that WWE seemed to have planned but it wound up being one of the best things to happen to the company in a very long time. The fans have gotten behind her and all roads seem to lead to a major match, if not the main event, of Wrestlemania 35. If that’s the case, it won’t only be historic, but it could also be a huge deal just as a regular story.

Above all else, Lynch has been nailing the character work. She’s channeled this entire idea that she’s the best to perfection and it comes off like she believes every word. You don’t get that in wrestling often enough and she’s doing it as well as anyone I’ve ever seen. She’s not the next Austin (because there can’t be another Austin) or the next Punk (because there can’t be another Punk). Instead she’s being herself, and it’s working very well.

Full Circle

Anyone who has followed me for any reasonable amount of time knows that I’m a Miz fan. He’s one of the best villains WWE has had in a long time and the fact that they keep coming back to him should tell you all you need to know about how great he really is. His lifelong nemesis is Daniel Bryan, both due to their history and the two of them being polar opposites. It was the dream match we never got due to Bryan’s injuries….but those are long gone.

The two of them picked their feud up again and had a really good match at Summerslam, but it didn’t quite feel complete. The next step, in a story we’ll be revisiting later, saw Bryan turn heel with Miz almost drooling at the idea of Bryan admitting that he was right all along. It was the teacher becoming the teacher all over again and Miz sold it to perfection. Bryan’s heel turn has been awesome, but his stuff with Miz was as good as it got.

The Gall Of That Man

Back in October, Roman Reigns was forced to vacate the Universal Title due to his Leukemia returning. It was as emotional and real of a moment as you’ll see in WWE, but the night wasn’t over yet. Later that same evening, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins won the Raw Tag Team Titles in honor of their Shield mate. We still weren’t done though as Ambrose turned on Rollins to end the Shield and become the biggest heel on the roster.

I loved this, because it’s the kind of thing WWE doesn’t do very often. This was taking a real life story and turning it into something. The turn had been teased for over a month and this was finally the time to pull the trigger. It put incredible heat on Ambrose and it couldn’t have been done much better. The follow up didn’t work, but my goodness it was an amazing moment when they actually went with something like this. It was great, but it should have been incredible.

Whodunit

Aleister Black was injured at a house show and had to go on the shelf. Since NXT knows what they’re doing, they turned it into a several months long whodunit mystery, as the question became who actually attacked Black. Everyone was a suspect and in the end, Johnny Gargano was revealed as the attacker as he gave in to evil to try and stop Tommaso Ciampa.

What made this story so great is that it fell into NXT’s lap and they ran with the thing. Not only did you get the reveal, some great promos and Black vs. Gargano, but you also got the excellent Ciampa vs. Velveteen Dream match as Dream accused Ciampa of being behind everything. That’s the kind of storytelling you don’t get every day and NXT made the most of a bad situation.

When I started writing this, Whodunit was the runaway winner. Then I realized it was only part of the real Angle of the Year.

Welcome To The Dark Side

In a name you’re going to hear a lot in these things this year, Johnny Gargano’s heel turn/descent into evil was second to none. What started as an incredible year with Gargano doing everything imaginable other than winning the NXT Title turned into a nightmare as Gargano became obsessed with ending Tommaso Ciampa’s reign of evil. That evil consumed Gargano, who took out his aggression on Aleister Black in a horrible assault, which saw Gargano become everything he hated in the name of stopping Ciampa.

This is the story of the year because it has a beginning, middle and ending. Gargano turning was foreshadowed when he couldn’t tell William Regal he didn’t do it and, as usual in NXT, the fun part was watching everything play out from there. This story isn’t over yet, but the ride they’ve taken us on so far has been magical. Gargano has gone from the light to the darkness, and now the question is whether it destroys him or if he comes out the other side. That’s great storytelling, and it’s the best of the year.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

205 Live
Date: January 9, 2019
Location: Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Vic Joseph, Percy Watson

It’s time to find out who gets the final spot in the four way at the Royal Rumble. This week we have Cedric Alexander vs. Hideo Itami with the winner moving on to the title match. That’s about all there is of note this week, which should be about all you need. It’s probably too early to have any of the new faces show up but you never know. 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 qualifying matches and a preview of this week’s qualifying match.

Opening sequence.

Noam Dar vs. Tony Nese

Before the match, Nese says he’s tired of Dar’s complaining and will win because he’s the better man. You can’t get much more to the point than that. A headlock takeover puts Nese down until he reverses into a headscissors. Dar starts in on the arm but Nese drives him into the corner. A moonsault goes sailing over Dar, who trips Nese straight down. Back up and Dar loads up a backslide, which gets two after he spins Nese around several times. Nese gets serious with a running elbow to the face and it’s off to the bodyscissors.

Some forearms to the face keep Dar in trouble and we hit the neck crank. Dar finally goes with the speed by ducking a running shoulder A running forearm in the corner sets up a northern lights suplex for two but Dar can’t follow up. With the covers not working, Dar slaps on a guillotine until Nese drives him into the corner for the break.

The double springboard moonsault gives Nese two but Dar blocks a suplex and fires off kicks to the head. Nese misses some kicks of his own and it’s another guillotine choke. That’s reversed with another suplex for two more but Dar just starts slugging away, which isn’t his nature. It’s so unnatural for him that Nese catches him with a pumphandle powerslam. There’s no follow up though as Nese would rather try the running knee, allowing Dar to roll him up for the pin at 12:39.

Rating: C+. Nese was doing his best here and that made for a pretty good match. I’m not wild on either of them but at least we got an energetic and long match with Dar, who has a bigger future, getting the win. If Murphy retains the title at the Rumble, Dar wouldn’t be a bad choice for a next challenger. Giving him a win like this helps that process and maybe WWE thinks the same.

Akira Tozawa isn’t here tonight so Brian Kendrick is reading a letter from him. Tozawa is competing in Japan to get ready for the Rumble and won’t let this opportunity slip by. The HAH’s are included but Kendrick doesn’t read them all. Kendrick isn’t sure why they’re friends, but he’s going to help Tozawa win the title.

Drew Gulak and Jack Gallagher come in to see Drake Maverick and offer him a list of potential people to hire for the show. Maverick promises to read their suggestions and drops them on the floor after they leave. Mike and Maria Kanellis come in, wanting to know why Mike hasn’t wrestled in five weeks. Maria doesn’t like that much time being wasted and thinks they just haven’t been fighting the right way. Why is Maverick bringing in all these new people when he doesn’t have time for who he already has? Fair point actually. Anyway, they better be ready to fight like her.

Lio Rush thinks Kalisto only beat him because of the Lucha House Party. Therefore, the trio is going to feel the Rush. How many people can those three tick off while still being faces?

Cedric Alexander vs. Hideo Itami

The winner is the fourth person in the Rumble four way and Itami has Ariya Daivari in his corner. They’re rather slow to start with no contact until nearly a minute in. Alexander’s takedown attempt doesn’t get him very far so he chops Itami down instead. It’s not the best idea to get into a strike off with Itami, who kicks away at the chest to take over. Alexander takes him down again but comes up holding his chest, which isn’t something you see injured very often.

The way too early Lumbar Check attempt sends Itami bailing to the floor with Cedric going after him, only to have Daivari get in a quick clothesline. Alexander gets sent into the barricade and it’s time for more kicks back inside. Some kicks to the chest keep Alexander in trouble and another set of them cut off his comeback bid. The chinlock goes on for a bit with Alexander fighting up and hitting a few dropkicks. The springboard flatliner gets two but Itami blocks a Neuralizer with a kick of his own.

A top rope clothesline gives Itami two and he’s getting annoyed at Alexander kicking out again. Alexander scores with the Neuralizer for two of his own and now it’s Itami in trouble. He’s fine enough to grab the rope to block the Lumbar Check and head outside, so Cedric dives onto both villains.

Another Daivari distraction lets Itami punch Cedric in the face to break up a springboard and a Falcon Arrow off the apron drops him HARD on the floor. Cool spot with a sick landing. That’s only good for a nine and you can hear the fans being into the near count out. Back in and Cedric gets a very close two off a rollup but it’s that spinning knee to the face to finish Alexander at 17:05.

Rating: B. Itami is still hit or miss in the ring but Cedric being one of the most consistent performers on the show is exactly the kind of thing to keep him straight. He still needs a MUCH better finisher though as I’m not even always sure what it’s supposed to do half the time. Cedric is going to be fine despite the loss as there’s a great value in being the consistent performer on the show.

Buddy Murphy is pleased with the result but wants competition before the Rumble. Therefore, next week is an open challenge for a non-title match. I don’t see that ending well.

Overall Rating: B. This was a show about setting up the Rumble title match and that’s a fine place to go. The opener seemed to be setting things up for the future, which is a perfect way to use the other half of the show. That open challenge could be a great way to bring in some of the fresh talent, which could mean multiple people. Good show here, which is almost always the case anymore.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/get-wallets-ready-looks-like-wwe-network-price-changing/

I’m sure there will be people complaining about it but seriously, this is the first time the prices have gone up in five years.  For what you get for the thing, it’s laughable to say it’s not worth the value and I’m hoping/assuming that almost every fan will still be anyway.  I’m not sure how you couldn’t be if you’re a big fan.

IMG Credit: WWE

Here we are and in record time. Back in the summer of 2012, NXT moved down to Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. This was the start of the new way around developmental, which would be the permanent case going forward. For about a year and a half, the only thing NXT had was regular television, which is still the case today. They finally got a live special called Arrival in February 2014, nearly two years after their first regular show. NXT UK is getting its first live special two and a half months after the TV show debuted. That’s quite the different path but hopefully with the same results. Let’s get to it.

Travis Banks vs. Jordan Devlin

This was added to the card last but could be quite fun. It’s the battle of the midcarders in search of something better to do and in this case you have two guys who could move up the ladder with a win here. Banks hasn’t been back from his injury for that long while Devlin has been built up pretty well over the last few weeks. In other words, it’s Ireland vs. Australia for what is probably a future shot at the (currently) British champion.

I’m going with Devlin here as he’s been built up better so far, even though Banks seems like someone who could be a star with the right push. The only problem is Devlin has already lost to Pete Dunne so there isn’t as much of a reason to see them fight again. Devlin is someone who has a lot of the necessary skills and would seem to be a better option at the moment, even if Banks comes off as the more complete package.

Dave Mastiff vs. Eddie Dennis

Now this is more my speed. These are the resident monsters of the promotion and have been billed as exactly that. They’ve already met on TV twice with a win for Mastiff and a double DQ in the rematch, making me wonder why they didn’t do a pair of draws to set up this big match. I’ve been a big fan of Dennis since he debuted on this show and hopefully he can live up to that on the big stage.

That being said, I’m taking Mastiff here as he seems to be the bigger prospect at the moment. Dennis is the kind of guy who can bounce back from a loss better as he’s a better talker and has a stronger backstory. Mastiff on the other hand is someone who is going to lose a lot the first time he’s beaten, and that doesn’t need to be the case just yet. Mastiff wins in a short and entertaining fight.

Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Toni Storm

This is another one where I’m not sure where to go. Ripley defeated an injured Storm to become the first champion. Storm is healthy now and, in theory at least, is the person that WWE would want to push to the moon and back. She’s young, energetic, looks great and can go in the ring. Where more can you ask for? Well perhaps a younger, taller, arguably more unique looking near prodigy from the same part of the world.

I’ll take…dang I guess Ripley to retain here, as I can’t imagine them putting the title on Ripley, only to take it off of her so fast, even if it’s to Storm. The problem here is they’ve done exactly what they should do here: make a match where I can’t imagine either of them actually losing. That takes talent and they’ve pulled it off here, which makes for a heck of a match. In theory they don’t change the title here, but I wouldn’t be shocked if they did either.

Tag Team Titles: Moustache Mountain vs. James Drake/Zack Gibson

This is the tournament final to crown the first champions and they’ve got a heck of a match. There isn’t much of a division around here but these two teams are the best around the whole promotion. Both are regular teams around the UK and now they’re getting a chance on the big stage. The fans can’t stand Gibson, love Moustache Mountain and….well they notice that Drake is rather good as well. That makes for a hot crowd and hopefully the match lives up to it.

They’ve both been built up very well, but Gibson and Drake makes more sense here. Moustache Mountain are the biggest stars in the promotion and don’t need the win. Having already won the real NXT Tag Team Titles, there’s no need to have them win here and get built up even further. Let the other team win and become stars, so that the big moment of Moustache Mountain finally winning the titles means more than just beating a team that hasn’t been around very long.

NXT Title: Pete Dunne(c) vs. Joe Coffey

Dunne has been champion over 600 days now and, to quote an old WWF poster, somebody has to stop him. The thing is, I’m not sure if Coffey is the guy to do the stopping. He’s a big guy with a good finisher, but Dunne is just on another planet. The win over Dunne is going to be the biggest thing to ever happen to the promotion and I don’t know if they want to waste that on someone like Coffey. He’s good, but I don’t think he’s that good.

I’ll go with Dunne retaining the title, followed by some kind of a big attack to set up the next challenger. There are a lot of options to come after the title and Dunne is going to lose the title….eventually. Coffey is the kind of guy who can be right back in short order and while he’ll have a very good, and likely long, match against Dunne, it’s not going to be enough to end the historic reign.

Overall Thoughts

I know I’m harsh on the TV show (the scheduling, not the wrestlers) but they’ve done a very good job of setting up a show where I don’t know who is going to win a lot of these matches. That’s good booking and with the right kind of execution, this could be awesome. The live shows are usually pretty good and while I haven’t been a fan of the build, the show itself looks strong. Now if only they can live up to the hype.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 11, 2019
Location: The Asylum, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

We’re now on the Pursuit Channel, which seems to be in pursuit of an audience. It’s also the fallout show from Homecoming, which saw Killer Kross attack Johnny Impact and Johnny’s wife Taya Valkyrie to end the show. Other than that it wasn’t exactly an eventful night, though it was a pretty good show. We’re also on Twitch now, which at least lets me watch the show live. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with the expected recap of Homecoming, which was quite a good show.

Opening sequence.

Here’s World Champion Johnny Impact to open things up. Johnny says the title is important but what matters a lot more is his wife being hurt. He wants Kross out here right not but gets Brian Cage, who says he’s the rightful champion. It took Johnny’s Survivor buddies to save the title so the rematch needs to happen RIGHT NOW.

Impact gets cut off by more demands but here’s Kross to interrupt. Kross calls Johnny the great impostor and talks about Cage having Johnny pinned for a ten count, or three pins. More threats to Taya are enough to have Johnny superkick Cage and dive on Kross. Cage breaks that up and takes Johnny down until Kross suplexes him. That’s no sold and a freaked out Kross bails.

During the break, Impact and Cage were about to go at it again. Impact agreed to give Cage a shot after he deals with Kross. Cage doesn’t seem convinced but goes with it.

The announcers plug the Twitch channel. Still a good idea.

Rascalz vs. Lucha Bros

This could be good. Pentagon and Dezmond start things off here and proceed to stare at each other for nearly a minute and a half. CERO MIEDO earns Pentagon a grab of the arm so he kicks Dezmond in the ribs and sends him outside. Pentagon’s dive is cut off by a Stunner over the middle rope from Wentz, who gets sent into the corner by Fenix. A 619 out of the corner has Wentz in trouble so it’s back to Dezmond for a dropkick to the floor.

Dezmond hits a slingshot dropkick on Pentagon in the corner and a running Bronco Buster from Wentz. We take a break and come back with Wentz kneeing Fenix in the corner. Some strikes from the Rascalz get two on Fenix but he’s right back with a suicide dive to drive Wentz into the barricade. Back in and double superkicks into the wheelbarrow splash gets two on Dezmond with Wentz making the save.

Pentagon superkick Dezmond down but gets kneed in the face, leaving Fenix to kick Wentz in the face. Some more jumping strikes to the face put Pentagon down but Fenix rolls in with the cutter to Dezmond. Pentagon is back up and that means double superkicks abound, followed by a Fear Factor to Wentz and a Gory Special into a cutter from Fenix to Dezmond at the same time (egads) for the pin at 11:15.

Rating: B. Overly complicated finisher aside, this was a heck of a match and a great choice to open things up on the new network. The Rascalz are a ton of fun and the Lucha Bros are as proven of a commodity as you’re going to get at the moment. This was a blast and an awesome high spot match, which is often the best choice to open things up.

The Lucha Bros shake their hands after the match.

GWN Flashback of the Week: Michael Shane wins the first Ultimate X match to become X-Division Champion in 2003.

After the end of Homecoming, Kross ranted about how Impact was a failure for needing his Survivor friends to save him. That’s why Kross powerbombed Taya: to wake Johnny up.

Kross wants to know if Johnny knows how to hurt him in tonight’s No DQ match. Tonight, he’s breaking Johnny out of his skin.

Here’s Rich Swann for a chat. After a quick YOU DESERVE IT chant, Swann talks about the history of the division and calls himself the No Limit Soldier of the division with no limits. He’s ready for all comers and here’s OVE to test that theory. After some yelling at Don Callis, Sami Callihan talks about the rumors of what’s going on with Swann and OVE. They have a long history but that’s not something you get to learn right now. Since family means a lot to OVE, Swann should accept the offer of a spot on the team and come home. Callihan throws him the shirt but here’s Willie Mack to break up the fight.

Sami Callihan vs. Willie Mack

Rematch from Sunday and they start fast with a double knockdown. An exchange of headbutts goes nowhere so Sami goes to the eyes in a smart move. Sami gets sent outside and catches a sliding Mack in the ring skirt to continue hammering away. Mack comes back with a Rock Bottom onto the apron, earning what sounds like a CHOCOLATE THUNDER chant. A whip into the steps cuts Mack right back off and he gets piledriven on the stage. Mack beats the count in at nine and starts the comeback with some running shots in the corner.

A Samoan drop into the standing moonsault gets two so Sami bites the hand to get a breather. That just earns him a sitout spinebuster for two but Mack takes too long following up. Sami powerbombs him out of the corner and gets two of his own off a knee to the face. Mack shrugs that off and hits a corner Cannonball but the Stunner is blocked. The Cactus piledriver is countered as well and we hit the pinfall reversal sequence. Both finishers are reversed again until Mack gets a rollup for the pin at 10:38.

Rating: C. Nice brawl here with Mack’s natural charisma being more than enough to carry things. OVE and Sami in particular might not be the best option in the world at times but I’m moderately interested in where this story with Swann is going. Now if only the matches can back it up. The Crists vs. Mack/Swann sounds fine to me.

LAX and Konnan celebrate with booze and cigars. Everything seems to be fine after their recent issues.

Post break, LAX gets in an argument with OVE. You knew that was coming.

Here’s Scarlett Bordeaux for the Strip Show. First up though, an announcement: next week she’s ending her talent search and announcing the winner. With that out of the way, it’s time for the robe to come off but here’s the Desi Hit Squad to interrupt. Save that for the winners, which will of course be the three of them. Gama Singh rants about Americans having no values because they want to see her without her clothes on. Raju says Singh wanted to see that as well, so the argument breaks out.

Cue Scott Steiner of all people, who is here to see the debut on the Pursuit Channel. He has a bit of a limp due to hunting some two headed deer at a club in downtown Detroit. Steiner isn’t happy with the stripping being stopped so the beatdown is on. Scarlett offers him a front row seat and the robe comes off so the lap dance can begin. This was a rather unnecessary cameo, though the Impact fans will likely say “WHO CARES??? IT’S SCOTT STEINER!” I’m sure this line of thinking isn’t part of why they’re on Pursuit at all.

We look back at Gail Kim costing Tessa Blanchard the Knockouts Title.

Gail says Tessa got what was coming to her.

Tessa Blanchard vs. Cali Collins

Tessa gets aggressive to start with forearms in the corner and doesn’t seem happy when Cali tries one of her own. An Anderson eye rake across the top rope sets up a running dropkick to Cali’s back. Tessa loads up the Buzzsaw DDT but goes with Eat Defeat for the pin at 2:20 instead.

Eddie Edwards is proud of his win on Sunday and is ready to move on with his life. Eli Drake comes in to ask if Eddie wants to carry the flag of hardcore after people like Tommy Dreamer and Abyss carried it. I could go or Drake vs. Eddie.

Su Yung and Allie are next to a coffin and sound worried about Rosemary. The lights flicker and the words “One more chance to join the shadow” appear on the coffin. Nervousness ensues.

Killer Kross vs. Johnny Impact

Non-title and No DQ. Impact wastes no time in starting the brawl and stomps at the head in the ropes. Kross runs him over though and hammers away in the corner. They head outside where Impact is a bit better suited for the kicks to the chest. Impact takes forever to set up a table and gets a chair to the face for his efforts. Kross wraps the chair around his neck and slams it into the post before crotching Johnny on the barricade.

The steps are dragged around but Johnny avoids having his head crushed with a chair. Instead he knocks Kross back with a chair of his own and then piles the chairs on top of him. A moonsault crushes another chair onto the pile of chairs onto Kross for the big knockdown that didn’t look all that impressive.

Kross pops right up and they stare each other down while throwing chairs into the ring. They both pick one up and then drop them so Johnny can throw punches in the corner instead. A pelted chair to the face knocks Kross silly and Johnny piles up the chairs on him again. It’s time to go up top but Moose runs out to shove Johnny through the table at ringside. The Krossjacket choke finishes Johnny at 12:16.

Rating: C+. This was a good fight with Johnny showing aggression, but I’m not entirely sure why someone who wants to destroy Kross was busy doing flips instead of just unloading on him with the chair. Kross was his usual monster self and I’m glad to see him win, though this feels like leftovers from before Bound For Glory with just Austin Aries missing.

Moose and Kross hug to end the show.

Results

Lucha Bros b. Rascalz – Cutter to Xavier

Willie Mack b. Sami Callihan – Rollup

Tessa Blanchard b. Cali Collins – Eat Defeat

Killer Kross b. Johnny Impact – Krossjacket choke

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: January 10, 2019
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

Now this one should be interesting. Earlier this week it wasn’t clear if this show was going to feature the debut of some of the NXT callups. Their matches took place with Main Event graphics up but it wasn’t clear if the matches were taped for the show or not. If nothing else, another studio show wouldn’t be that bad. Let’s get to it.

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

Yep it’s a studio show.

From Raw.

Bobby Lashley/Drew McIntyre/Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins/John Cena/Finn Balor

We start fast with Balor working on Lashley’s arm but getting knocked into the corner. Ambrose comes in and gets caught with a basement dropkick, only to drag Balor into the corner for a hard chop from McIntyre. The beatdown continues with Lashley hitting a chinlock but not being able to hit the spinning Dominator. Balor gets up some boots in the corner (it’s always the boots) but Lashley drives him straight back into the corner again.

One more chance gets Balor over to the corner so Cena can clean some house but the Glasgow Kiss cuts him off as we take a break. Back with Cena dropkicking Ambrose, drawing Lashley right back in to break up the tag. Lashley stops to pose and the delay lets Cena hit the AA to put both guys down. Ambrose cuts off the hot tag bid though and we hit the chinlock. They head outside with Ambrose sending him into the steps as we take a second break.

Back again with Balor getting the hot tag to clean house, including a double stomp and shotgun dropkick to Ambrose. The Coup de Grace connects but McIntyre is right there with the Claymore to cut him down. It’s too early to finish things up though as Balor gets over for the tag to Rollins. That means a springboard clothesline to McIntyre and a moonsault to Lashley and Ambrose.

The Falcon Arrow gets two on McIntyre but the Stomp doesn’t connect. The reverse Alabama Slam is broken up by an AA but Lashley spears Cena down. That means a superkick to Lashley and another one to McIntyre. The frog splash (with some crazy height) misses McIntyre though and Ambrose tags himself in. Rollins blocks Dirty Deeds though and hits the Stomp for the pin at 21:15.

Rating: B. Good, hot match to open the show as they try as hard as they can (in vein that is) to fight off the National Championship game. Rollins pinning Ambrose to continue their feud is fine, especially if Rollins vs. Lashley is going to continue. Having Cena in there is a good idea as you might not want to have him in a long singles match when he hasn’t been in the ring much lately. Solid match and a very good start to the show.

We get the Gene Okerlund tribute video. No Hulk Hogan part, though he’s mentioned.

From Raw again.

Here’s Alexa Bliss for the debut of her talk show, A Moment Of Bliss. After demanding and receiving a cup of coffee, we see a video on Ronda Rousey’s rookie year. Rousey is of course the first guest and wants to talk about the future instead of the past. She talks about someone who is more athletic than Charlotte and had a tougher road here than Becky Lynch. Rousey means Sasha Banks, so here’s Nia Jax (Me out loud: “GOOD GRIEF!”) to say that sounds like someone has a girl crush on Sasha.

Nia wants to know when she’s getting her rematch from TLC but here’s Sasha, who says she’s honored by the words. She’d love to face Ronda for the title and teach her how to lose with grace. Nia says the line starts behind her before she’s a 300.5 ounce (not pounds, but ounce) Samoan. Sasha: “B**** what line?” Sasha challenges her to a #1 contenders match right now but Nia has a seat and we take a break.

Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax

The winner gets Rousey, presumably at the Rumble. Nia does indeed get in the ring during the break as Bayley and Tamina are watching at ringside. Sasha kicks her in the face and tries a guillotine but gets thrown into the corner. A kick to the head rocks Nia until she runs Banks over with a knee. Nia drops her face first onto the barricade for a nine count as Bayley and Tamina get in a fight.

Back in and a Batista Bomb gives Nia two as we take a break. We come back with Nia holding her in a torture rack until Sasha slips out and starts in with the knees. The running knees in the corner set up the top rope Meteora for two but Banks can’t hold the Bank Statement. Nia misses the face breaker and it’s a Samoan drop to crush Banks again. There’s a corner splash and Nia loads her up in a fireman’s carry on the middle rope.

Instead of falling back though, Nia jumps down, dropping Sasha onto the corner in a nasty crash. That’s only good for two and Bayley dropkicks Tamina for a bonus. Banks comes back with a dropkick in the corner and tries a hurricanrana off the apron but Banks just falls off to the side in what looked like a botch. Back in and the Bank Statement finishes Nia at 13:23.

From Raw, again.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose

Ambrose is defending and it’s Falls Count Anywhere. Seth jumps him from behind to start and we’re off in a hurry. The fight heads outside immediately with Rollins clotheslining him over the barricade. They go backstage with Rollins throwing Dean into a ladder but missing a shovel shot. Ambrose sends him head first into a metal case for two and then gets in a ladder shot for the same.

Back from a break with the fight in the crowd and Rollins diving off a barricade with a crossbody for two. Rollins punches him straight in the nose and they head to ringside with Dean being tossed into the barricade. Ambrose is right back with a drop onto the barricade for two and it’s time to peel back the ring mats. After a kiss on the head, Dean’s Dirty Deeds attempt is countered with a backdrop onto the concrete.

They head inside with a superplex into the buckle bomb into a superkick keeping Dean in big trouble. The Stomp connects but here’s Bobby Lashley to pull Rollins out of the ring. Lashley beats the heck out of him on the floor, including an overhead belly to belly. Back in and the beating continues, including the spinning Dominator and a spear. Dean covers the finished Rollins to retain at 15:22.

Rating: B-. It was a good brawl but they telegraphed the ending by about nine miles. There was no hiding Lashley interfering to cost Rollins the match and that brings up the bigger problem: they set Rollins up as being back last week, have him in a great performance earlier tonight, and then oh dang he lost. Well thanks for letting us get reinvested in him for….oh a week or so. I’m sure Lashley vs. Rollins will be fine and Ambrose can find something else to do, but it didn’t make for a strong main event to end a bad show.

Post match Lashley puts Rollins through a table to end the show.

And again from Raw.

Here’s Braun Strowman for the showdown with Brock Lesnar. Paul Heyman and Lesnar show up on the screen with Heyman talking about how Strowman is looking for a confrontation. The words that Strowman needs to understand are Card Subject To Change, because if Lesnar came out there right now, there would be no Royal Rumble title match.

Strowman stays in the ring, saying he’s waiting for Beastie Boy. Heyman tells Brock not to

worry about it and they stay in the back, with Strowman saying Lesnar must be scared. Lesnar finally comes out, walks near the ring, and starts heading to the back. Strowman says Lesnar needs to get back here….because he’s winning the title at the Royal Rumble.

This was AWFUL as they clearly have no way around the fact that Strowman is the challenger of the month and has no chance of winning. That’s what happens when you do this match twice with Lesnar winning both times, the most recent being without breaking a sweat. Side note: the last time Lesnar defended the title (not counting house shows) in a match that didn’t involve Strowman or Roman Reigns was in July 2017. And they wonder why his matches stopped meaning anything years ago?

And from Smackdown because we have some time to fill.

Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Carmella

The winner gets Asuka at the Rumble. The fans are behind Becky, which isn’t the biggest surprise in the world. Charlotte decks Becky to start and a shoulder to the ribs puts her on the floor. That doesn’t last long and it’s Becky coming back in for kicks to both sets of ribs. A clothesline has Charlotte in trouble on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Becky kicking Carmella again but getting her throat snapped across the top rope. Becky is fine enough to slam Charlotte onto Carmella for two but Charlotte is back up to slug it out. Carmella breaks that up and hits a Flatliner on Becky, followed by the Code of Silence to Charlotte. That’s broken up without much effort and Becky missile dropkicks Carmella down. Becky gets suplexed into the corner though and a big boot drops Carmella again.

Charlotte moonsaults onto both of them for a pair of twos and we go to another breaker. Back again with Carmella getting two off a hurricanrana out of the corner and frustration setting in. A suicide dive takes out Becky and Charlotte’s moonsault misses. Becky is back up to suplex Carmella on the floor and they’re all down.

Back in and Charlotte hits a top rope Natural Selection on Becky but has to break up Carmella’s attempt at stealing the pin. The Figure Eight goes on until Becky breaks it up with the top rope legdrop. Carmella has to break up the Disarm-Her to Charlotte and it’s a spear to Becky. A superkick drops Charlotte but Carmella gets pulled into the Disarm-Her for the tap at 19:23.

Rating: B. Carmella was holding up her end well enough here and the ending is the right call. Even if Becky doesn’t win at the Rumble, there’s a very real chance of her jumping into the Rumble itself or winning the title shot at Elimination Chamber. This was what the fans wanted to see and that made for a rather entertaining match, along with good action from all three.

Asuka comes out for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. Well let’s see. It was mainly about Raw and Raw was terrible, so how do you think this went? I’m not sure why they felt the need to cram in so much from Raw when a good amount of stuff happened on Smackdown. We couldn’t have seen Daniel Bryan’s great promo or the very good tag match? No the solution must be more Lesnar vs. Strowman, which certainly wasn’t one of the worst segments of the year or anything like that. Bad show here, due to an overload of Raw.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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