IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: February 8, 2019
Location: Fronton Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

Things are starting to pick up around here with one of the biggest matches we’ll be seeing in Mexico as LAX defends the Tag Team Titles against the Lucha Bros. That could be a heck of a match with four guys who can work well together and tear the house down with the right amount of time. It’s likely to be better than the World Title feud, which still isn’t doing anything of note. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap opens while serving as a recap.

Opening sequence.

Willie Mack/Rich Swann vs. Crist Brothers

The Brothers jump the gun before the bell and take over to start, though I’m not sure the match ever officially got underway. Mack gets sent outside and it’s Swann caught in the wrong corner for the double teaming. That doesn’t last long though as Mack comes back in and sends the Brothers outside for the running flip dive. Back up and the Brothers drop Mack onto the apron, setting up a Crossface back inside.

Mack crawls over and bites the rope for the break (that’s certainly different) so Dave superkicks him into a rollup for two. The chinlock doesn’t last long so Jake goes with a chinlock to mix things up a bit. It’s back to Dave and a double clothesline allows the hot tag to Swann. Everything breaks down and Rolling Thunder into a splash gives Swann two but the Brothers are right back up with a spike Tombstone for the same. A double Stunner from Mack sets up a double handspring cutter from Swann, setting up the middle rope 450 to finish Jake at 9:40.

Rating: C. The ending came a bit out of nowhere but Mack and Swann work very well together, meaning this was a pretty nice little match. Swann vs. Callihan could be interesting and the backstory being filled in will help them out a lot. What we got here was good though, which tends to be the case in openers on this show.

We recap the ending of last week’s main event with Brian Cage allowing partner Johnny Impact to get speared down.

The Lucha Bros promise to win the titles.

Next week: Impact defends against Killer Kross, Moose and Brian Cage.

GWN Flashback Moment of the Week: LAX returns. This was during the time when Bruce Prichard and Dutch Mantell were around. Remember any of that? I’m not sure why you would, but you might for reasons of self induced pain.

Allie vs. Kiera Hogan

Allie is looking for Rosemary during her entrance. Su Yung and Jordynne Grace are here as well. Kiera goes straight at her in the corner with some running elbows and a clothesline gets two. A choke shove sends Kiera into the corner though and Allie gets two of her own off a sliding clothesline. The announcers ignore the match to talk about anything else in the coming weeks, even ignoring Kiera hitting a superkick for two.

Allie misses one of her own and Kiera hits something like an Edge O Matic. Su tries to throw in the bloody glove so Grace takes her out without much effort. With Kiera down, Allie thinks about the glove but realizes it would summon Rosemary, allowing Kiera to get up and hit the fisherman’s neckbreaker for the pin at 5:22.

Rating: D. Hey look: Allie loses again, which really shouldn’t be much of a surprise anymore. Like I said last week, if she and Su don’t ever win anything, why is she someone that needs to be dealt with? Allie being scared of Rosemary is fine and the story hasn’t gotten old and stale yet, but they need to find a better way to tell it pretty soon.

Johnny isn’t happy with the announcement of the four way when Cage comes in to say he’ll see him next week.

Rob Van Dam and Sabu will face the Lucha Bros at United We Stand (the Wrestlemania weekend show). That would have felt old ten years ago and now it’s even worse.

Allie and Su go looking for Rosemary and a new message appears: “The witching is upon us. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.”

Rohit Raju vs. Trey Miguel

Raju isn’t happy with the rolling around to start and yells at the fans as Callis says Raju wants to be like Gama Singh but would be lucky to be like Sonjay Dutt. Trey’s chinlock doesn’t last long so he springboard dropkicks Raju outside instead. A suicide dive is countered though and a faceplant onto the apron has him in trouble. Raj Singh gets in some cheap shots from the floor and it’s time to strike it off.

Raju actually gets the better of it with a shot to the knee and a right hand to the head for two. Trey is right back up with a double stomp to the back as this is getting more time than I was expecting. There’s a 619 in the corner, followed by a jumping neckbreaker for two on Raju. Back up and a sitout gordbuster gets two on Trey and a sliding knee to the back of the head (ala Adam Cole) is good for the same. The other Rascalz superkick Raj, leaving Trey to hit another 619 into a Meteora for the pin at 8:28.

Rating: C+. I….liked this? I’m not sure how to handle a world where a match featuring someone from the Desi Hit Squad actually entertains me but that’s what happened here. It’s no masterpiece or anything but what we got was fun enough and kept me entertained. Just keep it to singles matches and things can be completely adequate.

We look at Team AAA before the World Cup match.

Scarlett Bordeaux makes her in-ring debut in Las Vegas.

Sami Callihan vs. Puma King

Puma has been entertaining in MLW. Sami jumps him from behind to start but King is right back up with a superkick and it’s time to make some noise. There’s a running flip dive to the floor as the fans seem rightfully impressed by King. They head outside with another kick to the face keeping Callihan in trouble. He’s able to grab a tornado DDT on the floor though, leaving King outside for a near countout.

Back in and Callihan gets two off a Batista Bomb and it’s time to start stomping on the ankle. Or maybe to tear at the mask, like a heel should do in this situation. Sami lets him up so it’s the spit chop instead, with the announcers not exactly seeing the appeal. King gets tied in the Tree of Woe but manages to get his legs free for something like an ankle hurricanrana to escape. They both fall to the floor in a crash with Sami laughing (of course) as we take a break.

Back with Puma still in trouble and Sami showing some swagger for a change. King is fine enough to hit a spinebuster and an enziguri but can’t follow up. A victory roll into an elbow (just an elbow) keeps Sami in trouble and something like a Blue Thunder Bomb gets two. Some strikes to the face and ribs rock Sami so he bounces off the rope for a hard clothesline. La majistral gives King two as Sami grabs the rope, which feels out of place in this match. Back up and King hits some superkicks but takes a shot to the ribs, setting up the Cactus Piledriver to give Sami the pin at 17:26.

Rating: C. Another back and forth match here, though as usual it didn’t have much in the way of a flow to it as Sami was kind of going from spot to spot. Normally that’s not a great thing but it kind of fits with Sami, who is more about the violence and hurting people than getting a win. King continues to be fun and I could go or some more of him.

Video on Tessa Blanchard vs. Taya Valkyrie before their street fight next week. As usual, Tessa comes off like a complete star here, even if Gail Kim is going to get involved somehow.

Eli Drake runs into Eddie Edwards in the back and brags about getting the win last week in their tag match. Next week they’re in the World Cup match but Eddie doesn’t want to hear about it. He’ll do his thing and Eli can do his, but Eli wants to see the old Eddie next week. Eddie doesn’t seem to buy the idea.

Rundown of next week’s big show.

Killer Kross and Moose are ready for next week’s title match and seem ready to work together. Moose thinks they could be co-World Champions but Kross doesn’t seem interested. This treated Moose like a bit of an idiot, which isn’t the right fit for him.

Tag Team Titles: Lucha Bros vs. LAX

The Lucha Bros are challenging and get a big over the top entrance, which looks almost more like Chinese New Year than anything else. The Bros jump the gun again and it’s an early Pentagon Driver attempt being broken up, followed by a double belly to back suplex from the champs. That’s the first seventeen seconds so we’re in for a fast one here. The assisted moonsault is broken up and Pentagon hits a Codebreaker on Ortiz to set up Fenix’s top rope double stomp to the back.

Santana and Pentagon do the big staredown as the fans are WAY into this one, shocking no one at all. The other two get back int o break things up and Fenix kicks Santana out to the floor. Ortiz and Fenix slug it out with chops going upside the others’ heads until Santana comes in with a high crossbody. Fenix dropkicks both champs down and we take a break. Back with Fenix hitting Ortiz in the face to stun him on top as we’re actually in a standard match for a change.

Ortiz gets a spinebuster on Fenix and it’s off to Santana and Pentagon with more chops ensuing. The champs get the better of it this time as the announcers are doing a rather nice job of explaining how different these teams are with Konnan being a huge difference maker. A quick Pentagon Driver gets two on Santana as Konnan is starting to panic. The spike Fear Factor misses and rolling cutters take out both Bros at once.

A Codebreaker into a superkick into the double flip into a faceplant (how LAX retained at Homecoming) gets two on Fenix. There’s the Street Sweeper to Fenix but Pentagon makes the save, setting up the spike Fear Factor on Santana. Fenix suicide dives Ortiz as Pentagon gets two, followed by a regular Fear Factor for the same. The Bros have had it and it’s another spike Fear Factor with another dive to Ortiz to give us new champions at 14:11.

Rating: B+. I don’t think it’s as good as commentary was hyping it up to be but this was a very entertaining match with everyone just going insane, as they should have. I know the ending was a bit repetitive but there’s something to be said about dropping someone on their head over and over until they just don’t get up anymore. It’s the same idea that Edge had at New Year’s Resolution 2006 when he kept spearing Cena over and over until he won. Why go with something other than your biggest weapon if you have the chance?

Post match Konnan doesn’t know what to do. LAX gets up and Konnan tells them to shake hands. They do, though a little shoving takes place before LAX gives the Bros the ring to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I liked this show more than I was expecting to and it was a rather fun night. The main event was the feel good moment for the crowd and that’s a great way to go. Next week’s big show is already set up and we had a good night here as what might be the high point of the tapings. One really good main event is better than a lot of tapings get so I’ll certainly call this one a success, even with a pretty lame Allie vs. Hogan match (though to be fair, that’s more the story than the wrestling). Good stuff 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

Monday Night Raw
Date: February 11, 2019
Location: Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

It’s the go home Raw before Elimination Chamber and, thanks to some announcements made earlier in the day, we now have some matches for Sunday from the red side. As for tonight, Becky Lynch has been invited to the show and Seth Rollins is ready to respond to Brock Lesnar after the beatdown from two weeks ago. Let’s get to it.

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

HHH and Stephanie McMahon are in the ring to open the show with Stephanie talking about the “Elimination Chamber View” on Sunday before correcting herself. HOW DARE SHE GO OFF SCRIPT LIKE THAT!!!! So totally unprofessional. They run down the card with a focus on Ronda Rousey vs. Ruby Riott, leading into a recap of last week’s issues with Becky Lynch. This brings out Becky to say it’s nice to be here and nice to see both of them, especially since the swelling has gone down on Stephanie’s face. Becky: “I’ll hit you harder next time.”

HHH apologizes for what he said on Smackdown and now Becky has seen her doctors, who have conferred with the WWE doctors. There is no tear and Becky will be fine with a few weeks of rest. Therefore the suspension is lifted and the Wrestlemania match is on. Actually hang on as Stephanie has one more thing Becky has to do. The match is on…but she has to apologize to the two of them first.

Becky doesn’t get that because it was their idea to make her see a doctor in the first place. Stephanie: “Don’t be stubborn.” Becky: “SHUT YOUR FACE!” The McMahons have been screwing people over for decades and no one is stealing her opportunity. She’ll fight Vince himself if she has to but she’s not apologizing. Stephanie and Becky go face to face so HHH breaks it up and tells Becky that she has a choice. She can die on this hill and throw it all away or she can go to Wrestlemania. He wants an answer tonight.

Boss And Hug Connection vs. Nia Jax/Tamina vs. Liv Morgan/Sarah Logan

The team that takes the fall enters the Chamber first. During their entrances, Bayley and Sasha summarize their year and say nothing can break them no matter what. Nia and Tamina promise to win because they’re Samoans. Since you don’t want to be in first here, Sasha makes Morgan start with Nia and then bails to the floor before a tag. Logan tries to headbutt Nia and just gets headbutted back down. No one can do anything with Nia so thankfully it’s off to Tamina for a chinlock on Morgan. Nia comes back in so Liv kicks away at the knee but Bayley tags herself in.

The Squad beats Bayley and Sasha down as we take a break. Back with Banks down on the floor (again) as Bayley gets beaten down by the Samoan Slaughterhouse (yes the Samoan Slaughterhouse, which someone got paid to create). Sasha is taken out by medics as the beatdown continues without much effort. Bayley fights up and makes the tag off to Logan, who gets chinlocked as well.

The top rope splash misses though and it’s back to Bayley to clean house. Why she doesn’t just sit on the floor or walk out since there’s no benefit to winning the match isn’t clear, but my guess is general face nitwitedness. The running dropkick beneath the bottom rope hits Morgan and the top rope elbow gets two as Logan saves. There’s the Bayley to Belly to Morgan but Tamina is back in with a superkick. Nia comes in with the Samoan drop to finish Bayley at 14:40.

Rating: D+. I’ve seen worse and while it’s understandable that they can’t have Banks in the ring, the inclusion of Nia and Tamina just sucks the life out of anything. They’re going to get pushed because they’re monsters and they’ll tell you about how Samoan they are, which is the extent of anything they have going for them. Bayley and Banks as the first entrants can make for a heck of a run, though I can’t imagine they actually win.

Elias is in the ring as Becky is contemplating things in the back. Balor comes up to her and talks about Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush (dude stop being selfish). He knows she’ll do the right thing and take care of things. Becky: “You’re still awesome.”

Elias is ready to perform but we get a long video on Seth Rollins’ rise back up the ranks to the main event of Wrestlemania.

Elias is ready to play one more time but here’s Lucha House Party to cut him off. That’s enough for Elias, who snaps about being disrespected and his album not being nominated or a Grammy. Kalisto tells him to chill, because they want to walk with Elias. It’s finally time to sing the song, which is about how terrible it is to be in Grand Rapids. Kalisto gets in some guitar playing of his own and does quite well, earning himself a guitar to the back. Elias bails before he gets beaten down as well. I’ve heard worse ideas for a short feud.

Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush come to the ring…and let’s go to Sonya Deville and Mandy Rose talking about the Elimination Chamber. That was rather sudden, which seems to be a trend tonight.

Finn Balor vs. Drew McIntyre

Lashley and Rush are at ringside. An early Rush distraction lets McIntyre hammer away and the chinlock goes on in a hurry. Balor sends him into the corner but gets pulled out to the apron. A missed charge sends McIntyre hard into the post but it’s Lashley grabbing the boot to break up a dive. One heck of a dropkick through the ropes drops Rush and it’s a Sling Blade to McIntyre, drawing in Lashley for the DQ at 3:02.

Rating: D+. Not enough time to mean anything but it was an angle instead of a match anyway. They were smart to not have McIntyre take a fall here as there was no point to this being anything other than a DQ. It served a purpose and let us have an energetic burst, at least while it lasted before what is likely a tag match.

Post match the beatdown is on until Kurt Angle makes the save. Rush gets his ankle locked until Baron Corbin runs in to take Angle out. Braun Strowman makes the final save and Corbin actually stays to fight, with McIntyre saving him from the powerslam. You know what’s next.

Baron Corbin/Lio Rush/Drew McIntyre vs. Kurt Angle/Finn Balor/Braun Strowman

Joined in progress with McIntyre in trouble until he drives Balor into the corner for some choking on the ropes. Balor fights over and brings in Angle without much trouble, meaning Kurt can clean some house. A middle rope missile dropkick (didn’t look to make much contact but a camera cut makes the save) sets up the Angle Slam for two with Lashley making the save. Lashley plants Angle with a Downward Spiral and it’s Corbin grabbing the chinlock.

Angle fights back until getting sent to the floor as we take a break. Back with Balor fighting back but having the Sling Blade countered into a chokebreaker for two. Lashley comes back in to stay on the ropes but a powerbomb is countered into a basement dropkick. McIntyre and Strowman knock each other down on the floor, leaving Balor to block the spear and dive on McIntyre in a quick switch. Back in and Balor knocks Rush down, allowing Lashley to crotch him on top.

The spinning Dominator gets the pin on Balor, despite the boot being on the rope. I’m not sure what the point of a screwy finish there would be but it might not have been intentional. Cue a second referee to say what happened and the match is CONTINUING after another break. Good grief this is as obvious of a case of a match being extended that I can remember seeing in a long time.

Back again with Balor in trouble as Strowman has been knocked over the barricade and Angle is down outside. Balor fights out of a chinlock and hits a double stomp to Lashley, which is enough to tag in Strowman for the real comeback. Strowman heads outside for the running shoulders around the ring, followed by the running powerslam to Lashley. Balor adds the Coup de Grace for the pin at 22:18.

Rating: D. This was far from the worst match I’ve ever seen or even a terrible one but it felt like it went on for hours. There are very few things more annoying than a match that keeps going because it needs to keep going, which is exactly what was happening here. It doesn’t exactly help that this isn’t the most thrilling set of feuds in the world. Balor vs. Lashley is fine, but it wasn’t much more than that.

Kevin Owens is at a bowling alley and says he’s been spending as much time as he can with his family during his time off. He and his son have been watching Raw and it’s rather hard sometimes. It’s either going to be Raw or Smackdown but he’ll be back in about a month. Owens throws a gutter ball and seems rather ok with things.

Becky has no answer for what she’s going to do.

Video on the March on Washington.

Nikki Cross vs. Ruby Riott

This could be interesting. Nikki tells her to come on and grabs a rather aggressive headlock. The sleeper goes on with Riott standing up to drive her into the corner. Riott uses the knees to drive Nikki face first into the buckle as we cut to (full screen of course) Ronda Rousey getting in Becky’s face to say it’s bigger than two of them. Becky needs to man up and apologize, even if she doesn’t mean it.

Back to the match (because we can cut away from this but not Baron Corbin Chinlock Theater) with Nikki getting put down with an STO for two. Another STO on the apron is countered into a layout reverse DDT to put Riott on the floor. Ruby gets caught in the ring skirt for some forearms to the head but Riott kicks her off the top. The Riott Kick finishes Cross at 5:22.

Rating: C-. Completely unnecessary time away from the match aside (it came after a twenty two minute match and they take it away from a five minute match instead), this was entertaining while it lasted and Riott getting a win is fine. It’s also ok with Cross losing as she isn’t the kind of person who is going to be hurt by a loss due to her complete insanity.

Here’s Rollins to talk about Wrestlemania but he’d rather talk about the last twelve months. He accomplished a lot and it all culminated at the Royal Rumble. Rollins was at the top of the world but the next night it was knocked down with six F5’s. He’s never felt pain like that but what matters is he’s back up. Wrestlemania might be the last match of his career, but here’s Paul Heyman to interrupt. After teasing Lesnar being here (with Rollins not buying it), Heyman says he’s here to educate Seth.

For some reason Seth assumes that all men are created equal, but that’s not true. Rollins’ DNA does not match Lesnar’s because Brock is a rage filled monster. We call this a suicide mission, but Rollins says he’s fine with that. He’s tired of Lesnar holding the Universal Title hostage and he’ll do whatever it takes to prevent Lesnar from leaving Wrestlemania as champion. That’s not a prediction, but rather a spoiler. Heyman leaves and here’s Dean Ambrose….to tell Rollins to slay the beast. Dean sits down in the timekeeper’s area and Rollins leaves.

EC3 vs. Dean Ambrose

After the IIconics say winning the titles would be the perfect coronation for them, EC3 kicks and punches away to start, followed by a middle rope dropkick. A suplex sets up a nerve hold but EC3 can’t hit the 1%er. Instead he goes shoulder first into the post and Dean makes the comeback with a Boss Man Slam getting two. So is Dean suddenly just a face again? He’s certainly wrestling like one. EC3 crotches him on top but gets small packaged to give Dean a fast pin at 3:54.

Rating: D+. Uh….ok then. So Dean is leaving in less than two months and is now trading wins with the newcomer while suddenly turning face after months of being a heel? It makes as much sense as some of the things they’re doing right now, but that’s never stopped them before and it won’t do it now.

Alexa Bliss tells Becky not to apologize, which Becky knows is just a way to get into the title shot at Wrestlemania. Bliss says do whatever you want, but an apology makes you the Irish girl who swallowed her pride and sold out. Becky: “If I apologize, the only thing I’ll be selling out is Wrestlemania.”

Tag Team Titles: Revival vs. Bobby Roode/Chad Gable

Roode and Gable are defending. Wilder slams his way out of an armbar to start and brings Dawson in. That means another armbar from Gable as everything breaks down. The champs are sent outside with Gable hitting a moonsault onto both of them as we take a break. Back with Roode fighting out of a chinlock and bringing Gable back in. Dawson takes him down with another chinlock and it’s time to go after the arm.

A hard belly to back suplex sets up an assisted legdrop for two from Wilder. Another chinlock is broken up with another belly to back suplex but Roode gets pulled off the apron. Back from another break with Dawson getting catapulted into the corner, allowing the hot tag to Roode. House cleaning ensues with Roode bailing out on the Blockbuster but settling for a heck of a spinebuster for two on Wilder. Revival makes a blind tag though and a Gory Special/bulldog combination gives Dawson two (cool move at least).

Gable comes back in with a high crossbody to Dawson, followed by a Blockbuster/German suplex combination (with Wilder landing on his head) for another near fall. Wilder gets Gable up for a powerbomb (after a sunset FLIP off the top) with Dawson adding the top rope clothesline but Roode dives in for the last second save. Roode sends the Revival into each other, leaving Dawson to catch him with a DDT. A quick jackknife rollup gives Gable two but it’s a blind tag into the Shatter Machine to FINALLY make the Revival champions at 19:50.

Rating: B+. Well it took long enough and at least they won the belts in a very good match. I have no idea if this is going to put the Revival Might Leave rumors to bed but at least everything worked on the way there and we had an awesome match to finish things off. Roode and Gable never felt like anything more than transitional champions and there’s nothing wrong with that. Revival is LONG overdue to win these things and I’m rather pleased with how we got here.

Post match, Revival heads to the back and says they’ve been telling everyone that they’re the best and now they’ve proven it.

Here’s Becky for the decision, because somehow the ending of the go home show for Elimination Chamber is about HHH and Stephanie getting an apology to set up a Wrestlemania match. The bosses come out as well and talk about how Becky needs to accept the consequences for her actions so she can go to Wrestlemania. The fans don’t want Becky to do it so HHH tells her to ignore the fans and get Wrestlemania like she wants.

Becky quickly apologizes and walks away from a handshake, saying that now there is no one stopping her from her dream. HHH offers his congratulations, shakes Becky’s hand and says she’s going to Wrestlemania. Becky: “Wait that’s it?” HHH: “You’re going to Wrestlemania.” HHH and Stephanie leave as Becky starts talking about Ronda, who comes out to hear it in person.

Before it can get physical, here’s Vince McMahon to cut them off. He doesn’t buy the apology so Becky is suspended for SIXTY DAYS, meaning she’s out of Wrestlemania and Charlotte is in instead. Vince raises Charlotte’s arm and tells Rousey to get used to this scene, because it’s how Wrestlemania will end. I don’t think anyone really believes this is sticking, but it’s a nice cliffhanger.

Overall Rating: C-. That’s a crazy nice bump at the end as this was looking like a terrible show until the last thirty five minutes or so. The big thing continues to be WWE not knowing where to focus though, as we’re dealing with Wrestlemania build while also setting up Elimination Chamber on Sunday. It’s not going to get any better with Fastlane taking place in less than a month, and that’s not a good idea with so much other stuff going on.

At some point they need to pick a focus and stick with it, because we’re getting two half builds instead of one good one. That’s fine when it’s building to a big match, but I find it hard to care that much when the major Raw match on Sunday is for the inaugural Women’s Tag Team Titles and the first champions might not even be on this show. The last fourth or so of this show is good, but the rest is about as skippable as you can ask for.

Results

Nia Jax/Tamina b. Boss and Hug Connects and Sarah Logan/Liv Morgan – Samoan drop to Bayley

Finn Balor b. Drew McIntyre via DQ when Bobby Lashley interfered

Finn Balor/Braun Strowman/Kurt Angle b. Drew McIntyre/Bobby Lashley/Baron Corbin – Coup de Grace to Lashley

Ruby Riott b. Nikki Cross – Riott Kick

Revival b. Chad Gable/Bobby Roode – Shatter Machine to Gable

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

And it’s a good one.Becky Lynch apologized to HHH and Stephanie and was told that she’s going to Wrestlemania.  The bosses left but Vince came out to say that he didn’t buy the apology, meaning Becky is suspended until after Wrestlemania.  Charlotte will be taking her place against Ronda Rousey.

I don’t think anyone buys this as an ending that is going to stick (you can see the triple threat coming from here) but it’s a nice way to buy some time with all of the shows that they have to fill up between now and New Jersey.  This was a lot better than I was expecting and I’m looking forward to the storytelling, even if it seems destined to be equally about the McMahons.

I uh…..yeah.The Revival FINALLY won the Tag Team Titles.  I don’t know if it’s going to keep them on the show, but my goodness this was overdue and I was actually happy to see it happen.  Very well deserved and please let them have a nice reign.

Not yet confirmed but it doesn’t sound good.https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/breaking-major-change-to-elimination-chamber-match-superstar-to-be-removed-due-to-injury/

Mustafa Ali might be out of the match due to a variety of injuries.  I certainly hope this isn’t the case, but with someone who flies around like that, you have to expect the toll to catch up on him.  No word on who would replace him.  Who would be good?

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #41
Date: January 25, 2019
Location: Scottish Rite Temple, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

It’s the go home show for SuperFight and that could make for an interesting show. MLW doesn’t have a ton of experience with stuff like this and therefore the track record is hard to guess. The big story continues to be the build towards Tom Lawlor’s World Title shot against Low Ki, so expect something from that tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory of Dr. Rex Bacchus.

We look back at Low Ki and Black Friday Management taking out various people over the last several months, mainly thanks to Sami Callihan. Now Lawlor has laid out Callihan, so Salina de la Renta is sending LA Park after Callihan, which is tonight’s main event.

Opening sequence.

We run down the top matches at SuperFight.

Kotto Brazil vs. Vandal Ortagun

This is Brazil’s return after an eye injury that means he’s now wearing an eye patch. Ortagun doesn’t waste time in jumping Brazil and knocks him outside in a hurry. That means a kick to the chest to slow Ortagun down again and there’s the suicide dive into the barricade. What looked to be a running Sliced Bread is blocked and Ortagun snaps the patch into his eye like a true villain.

A hard whip into the corner keeps Brazil in trouble but he snaps off a German suplex for a breather. Another bridging version gets two and a springboard spinning splash is good for the same. Ortagun slams him right back down to cut things off again, only to walk into a Code Red. Back up and an RKO into the running Sliced Bread finishes Ortagun at 7:52.

Rating: C. Brazil isn’t too bad in the ring at all and plays a very good undersized underdog. The eye patch is a good way to build even more sympathy and then winning the match clean helps pay it off. At the same time you have Ortagun, who is a perfectly serviceable jobber to the stars.

Post match Ricky Martinez, the guy who injured Brazil in the first place, runs in and beats Brazil down. He even steals the eye patch.

We look back at Brian Pillman Jr. beating Tommy Dreamer in a Singapore cane match. Brian wants a rematch in any kind of match.

Dreamer calls in and says he’ll fight Pillman in a mystery partner tag match in Philadelphia.

Barrington Hughes vs. Ace Romero

Hughes is the hometown boy and Romero is the smaller of the two at 400lbs. They take their time locking up and it’s the big shoulder that goes nowhere. Romero dropkicks him into the corner….and here’s Rob Parker to say hold on there fat boys. These two shouldn’t be in the ring because there’s a pie eating contest down the street. Cue the Dirty Blonds to jump both of them at 2:15….and we have a tag match.

Dirty Blonds vs. Ace Romero/Barrington Hughes

Running corner splashes set up stereo World’s Strongest Slams to finish the Blonds at 53 seconds. What else do you want me to say here?

Mance Warner is still coming.

Next week it’s Dreamer vs. Pillman in an Empty Arena match.

Pillman and Teddy Hart hold cats and see fear in the Lucha Bros’ eyes. Then it’s time to train, which means downing a protein drink and pointing at a cat.

SuperFight rundown with Striker doing his usual, shall we say, verbose hyping.

Sami Callihan mocks Salina de la Renta for her cause because all Sami cares about is money. He’s taken everyone out and he’ll take out LA Park tonight.

Video on Lawlor vs. Low Ki.

Low Ki mockingly congratulates Lawlor for making it to SuperFight. He hints at Lawlor going through a divorce for the sake of his career before moving on to talking about his reputation for taking things too far. Maybe in Philadelphia he should take things too extreme instead. They got off the personal issues so fast that it seemed to be part of a different promo. Low Ki’s delivery was great as usual though.

Sami Callihan vs. LA Park

Falls Count Anywhere which apparently means hardcore. Salina is here with Park to make things more interesting. Before we get a bell, Park lays the Mexican flag on the mat and bows to it as the stalling is strong here. They shove and chop each other to start with Callihan opening his vest so Park can chop harder. The chops actually break the skin and Callihan starts crying. Park splashes him in the corner, stops to strike the dance, and gets two off a clothesline.

They head outside with Park putting him in a chair for the huge suicide dive, which is rather impressive given his size. One heck of a trashcan shot keeps Callihan in trouble but he blocks another dive with a trashcan shot. Park loses his belt and Sami blasts him with it a few times before daring to mock the strut. A beer to the mask looks to set up the running start lariat but Callihan gets tossed over the barricade instead.

Park turns part of the barricade into a ramp with a trashcan on top, setting up a suplex to put Callihan in even more trouble. Some chairs (the ones that don’t move rather than the usual folding kind) are thrown inside but Park stops to cover for two. They fight out of the arena and into the lobby with another trashcan shot giving Park two more. It actually goes outside the building for a few moments without much happening, meaning it’s time to go back into the arena.

Back inside and the referee gets bumped but is fine enough to count two off Park’s headbutt. The referee shouts about his ankle being injured and Park shouts a lot, followed by a powerslam for two with the referee stopping at two due to the pain. Park jumps the referee but a low blow gives Callihan a perfectly fine two. It’s time to set up some chairs next to each other but Park blocks a powerbomb and spears Sami through them for the pin at 13:37.

Rating: C+. This was a lot of fun with a good effort to hide the fact that Park is little more than a brawler in a cool costume at this point. Callihan losing over and over again is interesting, though he’s the kind of guy who doesn’t need to win all the time anyway. At least we got some entertaining brawling here and that’s all this was going to be.

Overall Rating: C. Not too bad here, though it was the definition of a filler show that had no real purpose other than being one last show before SuperFight. I’m looking forward to seeing the big show, even with the most obvious main event result they could have. Now just deliver with the rest of the show and everything will be fine. Completely watchable show this week, but nothing worth going out of your way to see.

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: February 5, 2019
Location: Angel of the Winds Arena, Everett, Washington
Commentators: Aiden English, Nigel McGuinness, Vic Joseph

It’s time to find out the #1 contender for the Cruiserweight Title as tonight is a four way match with the winner getting the Elimination Chamber title shot. Other than that we have a somewhat heated up Ariya Daivari, which isn’t likely to go very far because it’s a heated up Ariya Daivari. Let’s get to it.

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

Drake Maverick previews the four way between Lio Rush, Cedric Alexander, Akira Tozawa and Humberto Carrillo, with Buddy Murphy saying the challenger doesn’t matter.

Opening sequence.

Brian Kendrick vs. Mike Kanellis

Maria is is in on commentary again this week. Feeling out process to start with Maria saying last week’s loss doesn’t count because it wasn’t even a match. Mike runs him over and shout that this is HIS show, which isn’t the best battle cry in the world. Kendrick doesn’t like the sound of that and forearms Mike out to the floor. That just means a quick Maria distraction so Mike can run him over and get in a good posting. A suplex gives Mike two and it’s off to the chinlock as Maria says Mike only needs to win one match to become a legend.

Mike kicks him to the floor but Brian gets in a posting of his own for a breather. Back in and Kendrick grabs the Captain’s Hook for a bit, with Mike getting a single finger on the rope. Mike gets two off a superkick and frustration is setting in. A spinebuster is good for the same so Mike pounds in elbows to the chin. For some reason Mike lets up and Kendrick tells him to bring it, earning himself a kick to the face. With that not working, Mike tries a neckbreaker but gets reversed into Sliced Bread (Maria: “NO!”) for the pin at 10:36.

Rating: C-. I’m almost curious about where the Mike thing is going, as he hasn’t had any kind of a story, though at least he’s getting the chance to actually do something. He’s not the most thrilling guy in the world but he and Maria make for a good act. I had fun with this one, though a losing streak isn’t the best sign for Mike’s future.

We look back at Ariya Daivari laying out Hideo Itami after last week’s main event.

Daivari says he was tired of being the only person to have Itami’s back. Itami kept talking about respect but no one respected him until he took it last week.

Rush says he’s beaten Tozawa twice and has Alexander’s number. It’s time for Murphy to feel the rush.

Kendrick says Tozawa won last week and he’ll do it again tonight. Tozawa says he knows he can beat Murphy. If Tozawa can speak English, why is Kendrick here?

Carrillo says he’ll win the title at Elimination Chamber.

Alexander says he was running through the Cruiserweight Title tournament at this time last year but this time, he only has to beat three people.

We look back at Tony Nese attacking Noam Dar, earning himself a suspension.

Maverick tells Drew Gulak that he and Jack Gallagher can’t be in Carrillo’s corner, because no one is going to be in anyone’s corner. They leave when Dar comes in, saying he wants Nese next week. That’s a no, so Dar threatens to take care of Nese somewhere else. Drake agrees, making it a No DQ match next week.

Akira Tozawa vs. Cedric Alexander vs. Humberto Carrillo vs. Lio Rush

Elimination rules with the winner getting the shot at Murphy at Elimination Chamber. Rush starts talking trash, telling Tozawa that he’s beaten him twice and that he doesn’t know who Carrillo is. All three go after him so Rush bails to the floor, allowing Tozawa to hit a suicide dive. Back in and Cedric trades armdrags with Carrillo until Tozawa slingshots in to knock Carrillo outside. Rush breaks up another suicide dive and hits one of his own on Tozawa.

The big spinning tornado DDT plants Carrillo for two and Rush is right back with the trash talk. Carrillo kicks him down but walks into a missile dropkick from Tozawa for two more. Rush kicks Tozawa in the head for two of his own but Tozawa avoids the Final Hour. Cedric is right back in though and the Lumbar Check gets rid of Rush at 5:30.

That leaves us with three so Carrillo kicks Alexander in the head a few times. A heck of a missile dropkick nails Alexander, setting up a standing moonsault for two. Cedric is right back up on the apron but slips off and bangs up his knee, though he manages to clothesline Carrillo anyway. All three are down for a bit, which is a nice touch for a little reset. Tozawa kicks Cedric out to the floor in a big crash and shoves Carrillo off the top. The top rope backsplash gets rid of Carrillo at 9:56 and it’s down to Tozawa vs. Alexander.

Cedric takes his time getting back in and only has one good leg. The elbow pad comes off and Tozawa grabs the Octopus Hold until switching over to a rollup for two instead. Stereo big boots to the face give us another double knockdown and the fans are rather pleased. Tozawa gets up first and counters the Neuralizer into a snap German suplex, followed by a second one for two more.

Alexander is smart enough to roll away before the top rope backsplash can launch and drops Tozawa on the apron to take over. Back in and the fans are split in their cheering as the Lumbar Check is countered. Alexander gets him in an electric chair (after circling the ring a few times due to nearly dropping him) but gets countered into a reverse hurricanrana. The top rope backsplash sends Tozawa to the Chamber at 17:03.

Rating: B. This felt like a showdown for the sake of getting a big prize down the line, which is exactly the point. Tozawa winning wasn’t the biggest surprise after last week as Carrillo isn’t ready, Rush isn’t getting a shot at Murphy and Alexander has been done several times before. Tozawa makes sense and is a fresh option, so having a good match to get to the logical ending was rather nice.

Post match Murphy comes on screen to say he’ll be waiting on Tozawa at Elimination Chamber.

Overall Rating: C+. Another nice show here with a good main event and a perfectly watchable step forward in another story. Having another title match set up for the pay per view is a good moment and a sign that we might be getting more regular title matches on pay per view. That’s something the title has needed for a long time now and the regular TV show has been backing it up as well. Good stuff here, again.

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 29, 2019
Location: Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Aiden English, Nigel McGuinness

We’re done with the Royal Rumble and that means Buddy Murphy is in need of a new #1 contender. Murphy retained the title in a four way match on Sunday, meaning we might not be seeing the title defended for a little while now. Then again maybe they’ll actually pick up the pace for a change, which would be rather nice. Let’s get to it.

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

Drake Maverick recaps Murphy retaining the title and previews the show.

Opening sequence.

Kalisto vs. Mike Kanellis

The Lucha House Party and Maria are at ringside. During the entrances, Kalisto puts a mini sombrero on Nigel’s head, yet he somehow manages to not erupt. He’s getting better at this anger management stuff. Maria even sits in on commentary for a bonus. Mike goes after the ribs to start but gets headscissored out to the floor. Back in and Kalisto hammers away as Maria talks about all the things that she and Mike have done for a fair chance.

Aiden points out that the two of them haven’t accomplished anything in WWE yet and Maria isn’t pleased, even as Mike takes over again with a sliding dropkick. A whip sends Kalisto into the barricade (Maria: “Poor baby!”) and it’s some shots to the mask back inside. Kalisto gets in a kick to the face, followed by the hurricanrana driver for two. The Salida Del Sol is countered as Mike rolls outside, only to have him shove the suicide dive attempt into the barricade.

Back in and the required tornado DDT plants Mike for two, followed by a kick to the head to stagger Mike on top. Mike is fine enough for a super sitout Rock Bottom for a near fall of his own with Maria getting annoyed at the kickout. Three straight suplexes set up a Backpack Stunner for two more as Kalisto has to go with a foot on the rope. Mike grabs a gutwrench but Kalisto rolls him up for the quick pin at 11:01.

Rating: C. I’ve always liked Kalisto but this was a nice showcase for Mike, who got to show off a little bit. The problem is that he almost never gets on TV and isn’t the most defined character. Maria is a great talker though and really made herself sound like someone you wanted to see get what was coming to her. They didn’t play up the Power of Love thing here either and that’s a step in the right direction, assuming the two of them are sticking around.

The announcers talk about the Worlds Collide tournament. I really need to watch that.

Jack Gallagher and Drew Gulak are behind a podium and think there is potential in Humberto Carrillo. All he needs is the right guidance, which the two of them can provide. They’ll be in his corner for his next match.

Ariya Daivari says Hideo Itami is ready to prove that he’s the most destructive force around here, at Akira Tozawa’s expense.

Earlier today, Tony Nese and Noam Dar got in a fight in the parking lot until Drake and some wrestlers broke it up.

Nese has been suspended for starting the fight. Buddy Murphy isn’t happy with the suspension but isn’t upset about what he did. He retained at the Royal Rumble and now he’ll knock down his next challenger.

Akira Tozawa vs. Hideo Itami

Brian Kendrick and Ariya Daivari are at ringside. Itami hides in the corner for some early stalling as there’s no contact in the first minute. Some shots to the ribs stagger Tozawa but Itami goes over to Daivari for some advice (Perhaps “don’t sign an extension”?), allowing Tozawa to get in a few kicks of his own. The surprise right hand gives Tozawa two but it’s way too early for the top rope backsplash.

Instead he tries the middle rope version but only hits raised knees. Itami starts in with the kicks to the RESPECT ME chest. English even gets in some Shakespeare to talk about how Itami might be desperate, even as he drops a middle rope knee to the back of the head for two (Nigel: “Itami, Itami, wherefore art thou Itami?”). We hit the chinlock as the eerie silence continues. A few neckbreakers give Itami two and it’s right back to the chinlock. Tozawa fights up and grabs a quickly broken Octopus Hold, followed by the Shining Wizard for a knockdown.

The missile dropkick sends Itami outside for the suicide headbutt but Tozawa can’t follow up. Back in and the tornado DDT onto the top rope sets up the top rope clothesline for two. Tozawa gets in another kick but Daivari gets up on the apron AGAIN, allowing Itami to get two of his own off a discus lariat. The Falcon Arrow is good for the same but Itami’s running dropkick hits Daivari by mistake. That’s enough for a snap German suplex into the top rope backsplash to finish Itami at 14:55.

Rating: B-. That’s it for Itami and I can’t say I blame him. It hasn’t worked in WWE and that’s been the case for a variety of reasons. Let him go back to Japan where he’s going to be a much bigger star and most likely happier. There’s nothing wrong with that as not everyone is cut out for/needs WWE. Itami tried his best but it just wasn’t clicking, and that’s ok.

Post match Daivari picks Itami up….and lays him out with a clothesline. Might as well get some heat out of Itami leaving.

Overall Rating: C+. Pretty good show here with two solid enough matches and some story advancement. You can probably pencil in Tozawa for his title shot at Elimination Chamber, which is a good sign for his future. Tozawa is still a fun guy with a ton of charisma and while he might not be #1 contender, that’s about as clear of an indication as you can get. Nice show here, especially considering the lack of top stars on the show.

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

It’s a Sunday show this week after Medieval Busters held NorCal hostage.  We’re talking about AEW and some of the rumored WWE departures of the week.  Also we hit the mailbag.

https://mightynorcal.podbean.com/e/wwp-54-all-the-aew-news-of-the-week-rawsd-thoughts-mailbag-and-tales-of-twitter-fights/

Make sure to keep sending in your questions so we can fill said bag again.  If we don’t get to them, I’ll answer a few of them in the comments.

IMG Credit: WWE

Unforgiven 2004
Date: September 12, 2004
Location: Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon
Attendance: 10,000
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

This is another case of a one match show, which tends to be the case in the HHH era. In this case it’s HHH getting (another) title shot against Randy Orton, who was thrown out of Evolution last month. It’s not exactly a thrilling concept but there’s no escaping HHH’s title hunts of destiny. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at Orton being thrown out of Evolution and trying to become the top face in the company by running away over and over. It’s set to Saliva’s Survival of the Sickest, which was the song that kind of finished me with the band. I’m going to be extra sick of it by the end of the show, but that might just be due to hearing about this match all night long.

Batista/Ric Flair vs. William Regal/Chris Benoit

Benoit and Batista start things off as Lawler hopes Eugene is home watching the radio. An early Crossface attempt sends Batista bailing to the ropes, followed by a quick takedown for the tag off to Regal. A t-bone suplex drops Batista and it’s back to Benoit, who gets chopped by Flair. The backdrop has Flair in more trouble (as always) and it’s Regal coming in, only to have the knee taken out.

Flair goes…after the arm for some reason, allowing Benoit to come back in for some chops. An enziguri nails Flair and the Flair Flop takes him down right in front of Batista. He’s done that forever and it still makes me chuckle. Batista comes in a few seconds later and blocks a Sharpshooter attempt so it’s back to Regal. This time Evolution actually takes over, after what felt like a long time. Flair gets in more chops and Batista gets two off a neckbreaker. It’s finally time to go after the knee with Flair slapping on the Figure Four.

Benoit makes a quick save so Batista takes Flair’s place with a chinlock. Regal gets up and sends him into the corner for the break though and it’s a hot (ish) tag to Benoit for the real house cleaning. Everything breaks down with Benoit snapping off German suplexes all around. The Swan Dive connects and the Crossface goes on Flair, drawing in Batista to pick Benoit up for the break. Regal sends Batista over the barricade, leaving Benoit to get the Crossface again to make Flair tap.

Rating: D+. This didn’t have the slightest spark to it and felt like they were all just missing. It’s more an issue that I’ve seen them do a variety of combinations with these same people over and over to much better results. Regal getting involved is long overdue and I’m glad to see him getting a chance on the bigger stages like this. Everyone was missing here though, which is going to happen every now and then.

Christian doesn’t want Tyson Tomko to go to ringside with Trish Stratus for the Women’s Title match. It doesn’t matter as Christian has to go to the ring alone so what difference does it make? Tomko gets to decide, so Trish invites him to her dressing room after the match. Tomko to Christian: “Good luck.”

Women’s Title: Trish Stratus vs. Victoria

Trish is defending and has Tomko with him. Victoria takes her down to start and the champ bails to the floor in a hurry. As Lawler makes it clear that Trish is NOT a s***, she sends Victoria into the corner for some choking on the rope. That’s broken up and it’s a gorilla press gutbuster to send Trish outside. Tomko takes her away before Victoria can dive and it’s a posting to keep Victoria down again.

We hit the armbar for a bit, followed by a hair pull as the offense devolves a few levels. The chinlock is broken up so Trish grabs a spinebuster for two, followed by another chinlock to keep things fresh. The comeback doesn’t take long with Victoria fighting up and hitting the spinning side slam. Victoria gets two off the dancing moonsault but goes with a slingshot dive onto Tomko instead of following up. Stratusfaction retains the title a few seconds later.

Rating: D. The wrestling wasn’t good and it came after an ice cold build that was more about Christian vs. Trish than anything else, even though Christian only came back less than a week ago. This division is still dying for some fresh talent, but that’s been the case for so long now that it’s a feature instead of a condition. They’re trying, but they have no help in terms of build or interest from anyone.

Post match Tomko goes after Victoria, drawing in Stevie in drag for the save. Stevie leaves and Tomko wants him back out here for a match RIGHT NOW.

Stevie Richards vs. Tyson Tomko

Stevie comes back out as JR says this is the worst kept secret in wrestling. Tomko punches him in the face and we start the removal of clothing, because that’s what this match is really about due to whatever bad ideas Vince was having at the time. The wig goes off as well and Tomko shoves Richards’ implants into his mouth. Some right hands have Richards in more trouble as his bra comes off.

Tomko…rubs Stevie’s face as JR sounds ready to walk off the show. The fans on the other hand don’t seem to be there as it’s a mixture of light booing and silence. A slam has Richards in more trouble as the underwear discussion continues. Tomko cranks on the neck and then calls Richards a sissy, which seems to fire him up. Richards throws his wig at Tomko to distract the referee, setting up a testicular claw. Some dropkicks in the corner have Tomko in trouble until he hits the rack neckbreaker for the pin.

Rating: WIDANF. For Wrestlers in drag are not funny. I don’t get what WWE sees in this idea and I really, really don’t want to. I would love to have someone explain the point of this whole thing to me or why this needed pay per view time. It really does feel like they threw this out there because Vince would find it funny and nothing more. Lucky us.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Christian for the Intercontinental Title. Edge was champion but got injured and had to forfeit the title, setting up this match with Christian replacing Edge in a ladder match for the vacant Intercontinental Title. Christian had been put on the shelf after a match with Jericho so this was a perfectly logical move and about as good as they had given the circumstances.

Intercontinental Title: Christian vs. Chris Jericho

Ladder match with the title vacant coming in and no one at ringside. They talk some trash to start until Jericho hits a few suplexes. A trip to the floor lets Jericho throw a ladder at him to no avail so Christian scores with some right hands. Back in and Christian chokes on the ropes so Jericho enziguris him right back down. When all else fails, kick the guy in the head. Another ladder is grabbed and slammed into Christian’s ribs but another big show misses.

They fight into the crowd as JR wants to know the difference between a Peep and a Jericholic. Jericho chokes with a cord but gets pulled into an Unprettier on the floor, which should be enough to win just about any match. Here it’s only enough to get a single hand on the title (those ladders are timely) so Christian ladders him down and puts said ladder onto the top turnbuckle. As expected it’s Christian going face first into the steel instead, with JR saying even barbecue sauce couldn’t make that taste good.

Jericho sets the ladder up but goes into it instead, giving us another double knockdown. A catapult sends Jericho face first into a ladder bridged across the middle rope, followed by Jericho shoving one into Christian’s face for another hard shot. Jericho channels his inner Shawn by riding the ladder down onto Christian’s back and the fans are rather pleased. They’re both hurt so Christian ties him in the Tree of Woe in the ladder and hits a running knee instead of, you know, going for the title.

Christian does climb, so Jericho gets out of the corner and flips him off, which is enough to get Christian down. That earns him a dropkick into the ladder into Christian and Christian sandwiches him in between a ladder. The Lionsault only hits ladder though and Jericho’s knee is banged up pretty badly. Christian takes FOREVER to climb though, allowing Jericho to shake the ladder away, leaving Christian hanging from the belt. The ensuing ladder spot to the ribs and crash are rather snazzy and they’re both down again.

Jericho puts the ladder over Christian and goes up but gets shoved down, just barely saving himself from a crash out to the floor. That’s not enough for Christian to grab the title, but it is enough for him to turn around on the ladder so Jericho can get the Walls on top. That’s STILL not enough for the win as Christian pops up and shoves the ladder over, with Jericho landing tailbone first on the side in a nasty crash. It’s time for the jumbo ladder so they head up at the same time, only to have Jericho pull him down for another double crash landing. Jericho finally (and I do mean finally) gets the title for the win.

Rating: C+. WAY too long here with far too many false finishes hurting things. I’ve seen this match a few times before and it’s the same feeling every time: get on with it already. Jericho winning wasn’t exactly a shock and it took too long to get there. I can understand why they were given this much time if Tomko vs. Richards needed that long in the previous match, but that doesn’t make it much better. The match certainly isn’t bad, but a trimmed down version would have been a lot better.

Lita answers Kane’s door and says she hopes Shawn Michaels crushes Kane’s throat tonight. Kane comes out and laughs at her ranting, saying this is now a No DQ match. He’s going to destroy Shawn and Lita has to watch from ringside. We even get a rather forced kiss for luck.

Jericho says he feels like a king. Edge comes up to say he’s coming for the title, because Jericho knows he can’t beat him.

We recap Kane vs. Shawn Michaels. Kane put Shawn on the shelf a few months ago and has since managed to win Lita in marriage. Lita then used an open contract to set up this match with the hopes of Kane getting hurt just as badly. The injury is only brought up at the end, almost as an afterthought.

Kane vs. Shawn Michaels

No DQ and Lita has been dragged out with Kane, which I’m sure won’t go badly at all. Shawn wastes no time in going after him and Kane is knocked out to the floor with some right hands. Kane misses a charge into the post to make it even worse but manages to uppercut him out of the air back inside. Shawn knocks him outside and even skins the cat back inside because he still has it.

That’s enough for a dive and Lita talks some trash, allowing Kane to hide behind her like a true heel should. A shot to the face puts Shawn down and Kane slams him onto (not through) the announcers’ table. The second slam puts him through instead as the slow pace begins. Shawn gets a boot up in the corner but walks right into a side slam to take him down again. We hit the neck crank with Lita playing cheerleader, much to Lawler’s continued confusion.

Another slam sets up another neck crank, followed by a clothesline to stay on the neck. Shawn fights up and grabs a DDT for the required breather, setting up the more required forearm into the nipup. Since it’s just a forearm, Kane sends him over the corner and out to the floor for a ram into the steps. That means some blood but Shawn kicks a chair away. Kane kicks Shawn away as well though and it’s right back to the floor.

Shawn posts him this time around and knocks Kane down with a single right hand. The top rope elbow gets two but a big boot cuts off Sweet Chin Music. Kane nails the top rope clothesline but Shawn low blows his way out of a chokeslam attempt. One heck of a chair shot knocks Kane silly, though he still gets up first. Lita pulls the chair out though and that’s enough for Sweet Chin Music to knock Kane out for the pin.

Rating: B-. Not too bad here and while a rather lengthy eighteen minutes, it didn’t feel long like the previous match. Shawn got his revenge in a violent enough match though it was nothing that we haven’t seen them both do better before. That’s likely it for this mini feud, though you can imagine Kane and Lita continuing for a good while.

Post match Kane yells at Lita, as expected.

Shelton Benjamin is coming back. I didn’t know he left but apparently his last televised match was three months ago. Who knew?

HHH reminds us of how great he is and promises to take Orton out. All of Orton’s success is because of him and tonight, HHH is taking it all away. Somehow this takes the better part of four minutes.

Tag Team Titles: Rhyno/Tajiri vs. La Resistance

La Resistance is defending and hopefully Tajiri is healthy tonight. The challengers charge into the ring with Tajiri not being able to keep up with Rhyno for an unintentionally funny moment. Grenier shoulders Tajiri down for an early two as the announcers argue about being prejudiced. Tajiri is right back up with some armdrags into an armbar. Conway comes in and gets the same treatment so it’s off to Rhyno to miss a charge in the corner. You can see the empty seats now and that’s rather telling about the importance of this match.

Rhyno knocks Conway down and brings Tajiri back in for more kicks. Something like a DDT drops Tajiri and the champs start their cheating ways. A backbreaker keeps Tajiri down as this is as thrilling as you would have expected. The announcers give up trying to make the match sound important and talk about Orton vs. HHH instead.

Tajiri gets up a kick in the corner so Rhyno can clean house again. A belly to belly and spinebuster get two each on Grenier with Conway making the save. The hard kicks from Tajiri have the champs in trouble and the Gore gets two with Conway putting the foot on the rope. The referee isn’t happy, allowing a flag shot to Rhyno to retain the titles.

Rating: D-. Again, the match goes longer than it needs to and loses a lot of the crowd (what little they had of it) in the process. This could have been on any given Raw, though it would have been bad on there too. The build was fine enough, but it’s not like this was ever going to be anything more than a match filling time on a card. It’s a thing that happens on every show, but when it feels like most of the matches on the show are just filling time, it become a major problem.

We recap HHH vs. Randy Orton, which is all about Orton winning the title that was supposed to belong to HHH. In other words, it’s been a month of “THIS IS MY COMPANY BECAUSE I’M HHH” and a failed attempt to turn Orton into the top face by just having him go against HHH. The problem is that Orton has spent most of his time running from Evolution in a smart but not inspiring move. There isn’t much of a reason to cheer Orton, which is a different situation than booing HHH. The second part is easily accomplished, but it turns into more of no one getting cheered, which isn’t a good place to be.

Raw World Title: HHH vs. Randy Orton

HHH is challenging. Feeling out process to start with Orton calmly taking him into the corner and slapping him in the face. Lawler says HHH isn’t happy because he made Orton. JR: “Easy there Dr. Evil. I think Mr. and Mrs. Orton had something to do with it.” Point to JR on that one. Orton shakes HHH off and slaps him in the face again, followed by the spitting sequel. There’s a backdrop to make it even worse for HHH and we’re already in the chinlock.

Back up and HHH gets sent outside with Orton following, though JR isn’t sure about the plan. They head back inside in a hurry with HHH nailing a chop block. So much for JR’s analytical skills. An attempt at a crotching around the post sees HHH get pulled face first into the post but it doesn’t stop him from going after the leg. Another chop block keeps Orton down and a knee to the knee in the corner makes it even worse. A leglock goes on for a bit, followed by a facebuster to slow things down a bit more.

Some elbows to the leg set up the Figure Four, which makes a lot of sense in this case. HHH grabs a rope because he knows how to be a villain, though the crowd doesn’t seem to agree with the style here. The referee catches him grabbing the rope though and that means a break, followed by a thorough verbal castration. Orton shoves him into the corner with HHH’s head hitting the post to bust him open. Right hands in the corner stay on the head and Orton’s always good dropkick gets two.

A DDT drops HHH for two more but the sleeper is countered with a belly to back. HHH goes up for the most obvious dive into a raised boot I can remember in a long time to give Orton a breather. The high crossbody gets two and Orton throws him outside. Back in and the RKO is countered into a ref bump as I begin to sigh. Now the RKO connects for no cover as Flair runs in to get punched down. Batista gets in a few shots but misses a charge into the post.

HHH cuts Orton down with a low blow and here’s Coach in a referee shirt for the near fall. The lack of a pop on the kickout is as telling of a sign as you’re going to get. Orton punches Coach down and Batista is right back in with a spinebuster with Coach counting two (better reaction this time, but still not great). Orton backdrops out of a Pedigree and RKO’s Coach (all in one movement for a cool sequence). Flair takes one as well and it’s a low blow to break up the Batista Bomb. HHH is back up though and cracks Orton in the head with a chair. The slow motion Pedigree onto the chair makes HHH champion. Again.

Rating: C+. Well of course he did. It was clear that Orton wasn’t working as a champion (for various reasons) but the fans aren’t going to get behind him as the uncrowned champion after he loses the title to another soul crushing HHH win. It feels like another case of HHH showing everyone who runs Raw because he, yes he, is the only person who can fix all of Raw’s problems despite being a big source of their problems.

The match itself was actually pretty good, albeit slow and with a bad ending. As has been the case with almost everything on the show tonight, it felt like the match was being stretched out for the sake of filling in the show, which isn’t a great feeling about the main event. The crowd didn’t care and that was the case with so much of Orton’s time as champion. If they don’t care about him being champion, they’re not going to care about him losing the title.

JR is disgusted to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. Just a completely lifeless show here which never got off the ground, despite some matches being pretty good. The problem here was how little there was to care about, which has been a problem for a long time. It’s felt like a matter of time before HHH got the title back since the second Orton won it and now that’s where we are: right back where we were, waiting on the next big name to challenge him. I’m sure Orton will get a few more chances but it’s not like it’s going to matter for the time being. Orton didn’t work as champion, and now we’re right back where we were before Wrestlemania. Lucky us.

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