IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: November 7, 2018
Location: Cambridge Corn Exchange, Cambridge, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

We’re continuing the British theme this week with two more episodes of NXT UK. It’s a big show this time around two with the United Kingdom Title on the line as Danny Burch challenges Pete Dunne. Someone has to take the title from Dunne eventually and there are worse options than Burch. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Dave Mastiff vs. Damien Weir

Weir looks scared. They’re doing the Earthquake bit with the camera shaking every time Mastiff takes a step during his entrance. Weir bounces off of Mastiff to start and there’s a huge backsplash. A one armed delayed vertical suplex drops Weir again and a really big Cannonball finishes him off at 2:26.

We look back at Wolfgang and the Coffey Brothers joining forces last week.

Video on Ligero.

Video on James Drake.

Video on Jinny, a fashionista. I’ve heard good things about her elsewhere but the fashionista part wasn’t mentioned.

Ligero vs. James Drake

Ligero drives him into the ropes to start and Drake hides for a bit. Back in and Drake forearms him in the mask so Ligero comes back with some of his own (Drake must have messed up the horn), followed by a spinwheel kick for one. Drake throws some heavy shots in the corner and it’s off to the chinlock. Ligero comes back with some more kicks and a Code Red for two, only to miss something off the top. A running corner dropkick gives Drake two of his own but Ligero is right back with a springboard tornado DDT for the pin at 5:49.

Rating: C-. Ligero is fine for the local luchador while Drake is another name on the long list of heels who don’t stand out in the slightest. He was billed as Mr. Mayhem, even though he did nothing that made him stand out or came off as mayhemish in the slightest. Just a match really, but Ligero is going to get a following.

Toni Storm is ready to face anyone who comes out her, including Dakota Kai. This brings Kai in, to say she’ll be that much better next week. They seem cool with each other.

Video on Ashton Smith.

Zack Gibson will be back next week.

Smith comes out for a match but gets jumped by Wolfgang and the Coffey Brothers. Joe talks about being upset about what happened in the Royal Albert Hall and now he sees people with similar views as his. If you’re not on their level, they will eliminate you. There is no more British Strong Style and there will be no more Big Strong Boys. This is their kingdom. Not bad, though the addition of Wolfgang brings them down a few notches. They need a story of some kind like this though as you can only have one off matches for so long.

Flash Morgan Webster and Mark Andrews are ready to fight the Coffeys. Smith comes in and says he’s doing this with them. The trio goes in to see Johnny Saint.

Sid Scala vs. Eddie Dennis

I’ve been looking forward to this one. Dennis, a rather tall guy who is a little lanky, kicks him in the ribs to start but gets kicked in the knee. That just earns Scala another forearm and some right hands to the head. The cravate goes on and a jumping knee drop gets two. Dennis shouts about waiting a decade for this moment and wants better competition. Scala slaps him in the face and gets one of his own off a high crossbody. That’s about it for him though as a Razor’s Edge buckle bomb sets up an inverted implant DDT to finish Scala at 3:29.

Rating: C. Dennis has intrigued me since his first vignette and he more than lived up to the hype here. He has a good look (the height makes him stand out) and the backstory does him a lot of good. That’s the first new character who has stood out to me on this show and that’s what this place needs.

United Kingdom Title: Pete Dunne vs. Danny Burch

Burch is challenging and we get Big Match Intros. Dunne takes him down by the leg to start and gets in a kick to annoy Burch. The test of strength goes to Dunne and it’s time to crank on the finger while hammerlocking the other arm. Burch fights up with a suplex and goes for Dunne’s hand, sending the champ into the ropes.

Back up and Dunne’s leapfrog is pulled down by the leg but Dunne escapes the Crossface. They head to the floor with an X Plex dropping Burch onto the apron to put him in real trouble. It’s time to crank on the arm again and Dunne hits a hard kick to the elbow. Dunne ties the arm around his leg and rips at Burch’s face. Burch fights back with chops and a middle rope dropkick sends Dunne flying. A rather snappy nipup sets up a powerbomb, followed by a knee to the face to give Burch two.

Dunne is right back with another stomp to the arm and it’s time to head outside again. The arm is sent into the steps (you can’t say Dunne isn’t focused) but Burch is right back with a German suplex. Back in and Dunne grabs a triangle, which is countered into a buckle bomb. A German superplex gets two and they pull themselves up on the ropes for the big slugout. Another X Plex sets up an armbar but Burch reverses into a quickly broken Crossface.

Burch hits one heck of a clothesline and they’re both down again. It’s Dunne up first and stomping away at Burch’s head but Burch gets up again for a headbutt. The hanging DDT gets a close two and you can hear the fans sounding shocked. The Crossface goes on again in the middle of the ring but Dunne grabs the nose (egads) for the break. The Bitter End gets two and it’s time for a triangle with the finger bending to make Burch tap at 16:20.

Rating: B+. More Dunne greatness with Burch more than holding up his end of the match. These guys beat the heck out of each other and it was cool to see the arm playing into the ending. As usual, I have no idea who takes the title from Dunne but it’s nice to see them going so hard with his title reign as the title change is going to be huge.

Overall Rating: B. That’s probably the best show they’ve done so far with a big title match and a good debut from Dennis. They’re starting to set up some stories here and that makes the show much better. There are some people I want to see and if they can keep doing that, everything is going to start getting better.

Results

Dave Mastiff b. Damien Weir – Cannonball

Ligero b. James Drake – Springboard tornado DDT

Eddie Dennis b. Sid Scala – Inverted implant DDT

Pete Dunne b. Danny Burch – Triangle choke

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-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: June 7, 2004
Location: Pepsi Arena, Albany, New York
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

It’s the go home show for Bad Blood and we can see most of the card from here. The big story continues to be HHH vs. Shawn Michaels inside the Cell, though last week’s show got some focus on Kane vs. Chris Benoit for the World Heavyweight Title. At the same time though, focus was also heavily on Eugene, which doesn’t bode well for his future. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s Stacy Keibler to open things up. She plugs the Diva Search, saying it’s a great opportunity to be a TV star (not a wrestler, not a valet, but a TV star). One thing the winner will have to get used to is having their own entrance, so Stacy demonstrates her own a few times. Cue Gail Kim to interrupt, saying Stacy can show you how to be a Diva but she’s going to show us how to be a future Women’s Champion.

Gail Kim vs. Lita

Lita starts fast with a running corner clothesline but a drop toehold sends her throat first into the ropes. It’s off to the legs for Gail as she kicks at Lita’s knee and rams it into the mat, leaving JR to completely ignore Lawler’s questions about Lita’s looks. A leglock goes on for a bit before Gail wraps the leg around the post. Lita makes it back in and hits an enziguri, followed by a suplex into a nip up on one leg. Gail is right back with a reverse Figure Four to send Lita screaming and crawling to the ropes as Lawler is rather pleased with the legs twisting so much. Back up and Lita grabs a DDT for the clean pin.

Rating: D. The wrestling could have been worse but I really hope this isn’t supposed to set up a triple threat on Sunday. Gail is already the #1 contender to the Women’s Title and now Lita just pins her like that. I know the women’s division is kind of a mess and stuff like this isn’t doing it any favors.

Coach comes in to see Johnny Nitro and Eric Bischoff, the latter of whom gives him a match with Eugene on Sunday. Nitro thinks that might go bad for Bischoff, so Eugene gives him a match with Eugene tonight. If Nitro loses, “he’s going to be hearing the exact same words Donald Trump’s apprentices here: ‘YOU’RE FIRED!’” So Bischoff wants to get rid of Eugene and puts him against an announcer and a rookie? Why is he not making a nine on one handicap match? Must be a villainous authority figure.

Batista vs. Shelton Benjamin

Ric Flair is in Batista’s corner. Batista goes straight to the power by whipping Benjamin around but gets sent face first into the buckle. A powerslam and suplex take Benjamin right back down until he gets up and jumps on Batista’s back for a choke. With that not working, Benjamin goes with a kick to the leg and a running knee to the head.

The Stinger Splash draws Flair onto the apron (as it should) and Batista uses the distraction for a heck of a spinebuster. Cue Randy Orton for some reason and Benjamin slips out of the Batista Bomb. There’s the top rope clothesline but Orton gets on the apron, allowing Batista to hit his hard clothesline. Now the Batista Bomb can connect for the pin.

Rating: C. Two matches and two really questionable booking choices with two #1 contenders for a show in less than a week losing. This one wasn’t clean but Shelton has been on a roll in recent weeks, mainly thanks to beating Evolution over and over. So now he loses before the title shot against the last member of the team? I continue to be astounded and confused by this company.

Post match, Evolution destroys Benjamin. This leads to him winning the title right?

Edge and Chris Benoit aren’t happy with each other for losing the Tag Team Titles tonight. Making it even worse, Edge couldn’t get to Bischoff to get their rematch. Coach comes in and announces Benoit vs. La Resistance in a handicap match tonight. Good thing he was standing right there.

Trish Stratus and Tyson Tomko come in to see Bischoff. See, Lita beat the #1 contender earlier tonight and Trish beat Lita a few weeks ago. That’s not enough to get her a title shot, but she does get the good news of Tomko vs. Chris Jericho on Sunday. Kane comes in, stares Tomko down, and says he wants to talk to Bischoff alone.

Chris Jericho vs. A-Train

Oh yeah A-Train still works here. Jericho still has bad ribs so A-Train knees him in the bandages to start. The comeback is cut off with a gorilla press drop and more kicks to the ribs keep Jericho down. A-Train bends the ribs over the knee so Jericho kicks him in the head (8 3/8 I believe) for the break. The Derailer gives A-Train two and that’s going to be it for his chances here. The Train Wreck is broken up and it’s an Enziguri to set up the Walls to make A-Train tap in a hurry. Now wouldn’t it have made more sense to have Bischoff use A-Train on Eugene and Nitro on Jericho because even Nitro could beat an injured Jericho?

Smackdown Rebound.

Here’s HHH for his weekly chat. In a few minutes he’s going to go sit in the sky box with his food and drinks while Orton destroys Shawn Michaels. Now he’s not a religious man, but he knows Shawn is. He doesn’t know if he’s ever going to Heaven, but on Sunday, he and Shawn will go to h***. HHH heads up to his sky box, actually going through the crowd. Eh it was short so I can’t complain.

Video on HHH hurting Shawn over the years.

Video on Shawn hurting HHH over the years. Never let it be said that this feud leaves any stone unturned to tell you how AMAZING it is.

Flair and Batista have joined HHH in the box.

Chris Benoit vs. La Resistance

Non-title and Benoit has to cut off Grenier singing O Canada in French. Benoit sends Conway down and tells Grenier to bring it on as well. Instead it’s Conway chopping the skin off his chest as the USA chants start up. It’s off to the choking on the ropes, followed by the chinlock to continue the theme.

Conway gets two off a neckbreaker and it’s back to Grenier for the knees to the ribs to slow Benoit down. In a bit of a change of pace, Benoit gets tied in the ropes with Grenier putting on a full nelson like a Tarantula (that’s a new one). A posting in front of the fans shouting USA makes my head hurt and it’s back to the double teaming, which draws in Edge for the DQ.

Rating: D. This was another match that happened but the ending is likely to set up another title match down the line. La Resistance need to hold the titles for a little while, if nothing else just to get the division back towards some regular teams. Benoit and Edge were good with the big heel group to fight, but you can only do that for so long. At least the French guys are fine in their roles, and that’s better than random teams winning the titles.

Chris Benoit/Edge vs. Kane/La Resistance

Joined in progress with Conway chinlocking Edge for a bit and handing it off to Grenier for a chinlock with a knee in the back (see, totally different move). Edge finally suplexes his way to freedom and brings in Benoit to face Kane. The chokeslam attempt is broken up by a spear from Edge and there’s the Swan Dive to Kane. With Benoit holding his head, Kane sits up so the Crossface takes him down again. Edge fights the French guys on the floor, leaving Kane to power out of the Crossface. The chokeslam is good enough for the pin on Benoit.

Rating: D. Good to see the World Heavyweight Champion lose twice in one night, especially to people as on his level as Kane and La Resistance while HHH literally looks down on everyone else. This feels more like the Intercontinental Title feud than the World Title and it seems that everyone is ok with that. I’m sure another HHH title reign will fix everything though. The match was short but so much of it was spent in the chinlock, followed by Benoit losing again. It makes sense for Sunday’s booking, but this show has made us suffer enough so far.

Eugene vs. Johnny Nitro

Coach is on commentary and if Nitro loses, he’s fired. Johnny comes out to the old Nitro theme song, which still feels wrong on this show. Eugene twists both arms to start and wraps Nitro up in a bodyscissors to roll him around the ring. A dropkick to the back sends Nitro into the ropes, setting up a schoolboy for two. And now, we hit the Junkyard Dog impression, followed by the airplane spin. Eugene’s top rope ax handle is good for the pin, meaning even someone mentally challenged can beat Nitro. I’m sure there’s a joke in there somewhere. This was exactly how to use Eugene and so much better than last week.

Post match Coach wants to fight Eugene but falls off the announcers’ area.

Bad Blood rundown, including Victoria defending against Lita, Trish and Gail.

Lita is on the phone with Matt Hardy and tells him about getting the title shot. They hang up and here’s Kane, who says he got her into the title match. That way, they can both be champions after Bad Blood. See, Kane lied because it’s never over. Lawler: “Lita must smell delicious.”

Randy Orton vs. Shawn Michaels

Non-title. Shawn sends him outside to start but runs into a boot back inside. The slugout goes to Shawn but he makes the eternal mistake (in this company at least) and misses a charge into the post. Some forearms just annoy Shawn so he grabs a neckbreaker to put Orton in trouble again. With the match not going much of anywhere, JR goes into his traditionally bizarre discussion of the Cell having a mind of its own, saying it awaits the company coming to it soon.

Orton kicks him out of the air for two as the back and forth continues. He finally goes back to the arm that went into the post (it took long enough) and a flying armbar gets two. Shawn avoids a dropkick though and it’s off to the Figure Four, which JR calls mind games. Why he would play mind games with someone he’s not facing on Sunday isn’t clear, but we don’t have time to figure out every questionable thing on this show.

Orton makes the rope so Shawn stays on the leg before hitting him in the face using various methods. The second Figure Four attempt is broken up with Shawn being kicked into the post in a smart move. Shawn uses the good arm to clothesline him outside and there’s the dive to the floor, so HHH sends Batista down to ringside. Back from a break with Batista posting Shawn to bust him open pretty well.

That’s only good for two back inside and Shawn gets whipped into the corner for the upside down flip. Orton’s dropkick bangs up his knee again but he’s fine enough to cover for two anyway. The chinlock goes on as this match just hasn’t been long enough yet. Shawn fights up for the forearm into the nip up and it’s time for the big comeback. A running ax handle (Shawn must be a Eugene fan) sets up the top rope elbow but Batista comes in for the DQ.

Rating: C. This was right between fine and boring, which makes for a bad combination when it lasts twenty minutes. It makes sense to keep either of them from taking a clean loss but you would think they could do a little better than Shawn’s random mind games with Flair and HHH sending minions after Michaels. Not too bad, but not very interesting.

Post match Shawn fights off Orton and Batista before going to the sky box to fight HHH to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. If this was supposed to make me want to see Bad Blood, they’re worse off than I thought. There was no good wrestling, the angle advancement was rather questionable, Kane would still rather mess with Matt and Lita than try to be World Champion, and the best thing about the show was Trish being added to the Women’s Title match. This was one of the worst shows they’ve done in a long time, which actually feels overdue. You could tell things were getting worse, but this was where but started to fall apart. Bad show, and a worse build towards the pay per view.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

At the age of 83.  He’s likely best known as the manager and trainer of Shawn Michaels, but he had a heck of a career in both Florida and Texas.  Lothario was one of those guys you had to see to really appreciate, but he was a heck of a talent and someone worth tracking down.

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: November 6, 2018
Location: Manchester Arena, Manchester, England
Commentators: Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

We’re in England again for the final big show on the long international tour. This show is going to be almost all about the fallout from Crown Jewel and the build towards Survivor Series, which is a mere twelve days away. Expect a lot of people being added to the card in a hurry. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Paige to get things going. She wastes no time in introducing Shane McMahon, though the fans are NOT happy to see him. After a quick clip of the ending of the tournament and a photo op with the cup, Shane says he isn’t the Best in the World. That trophy doesn’t belong to him, but it does belong to everyone here on Smackdown. He reacted by instinct on Friday because he couldn’t handle the idea of Smackdown not being considered the best.

That brings him to Survivor Series so we run down the champion vs. champion matches. What matters most though are the elimination matches so here’s the captain of the men’s team: Daniel Bryan. After soaking in some cheers, Daniel says Shane deserves some cheers for not saying he’s the Best in the World. That’s quickly cut off by the Miz, who comes out with a slight limp.

Miz doesn’t like the idea of Shane coming in to steal his trophy, because 2/3 of it should belong to the man who won the first two matches. So how are they splitting this up? Does Shane come live at his house? Shane says if things had gone the way they should, Miz would have been fired. Miz doesn’t buy that, because he’s never been too injured to compete.

Based on his performance at the World Cup, he should be the captain. Shane agrees, but Bryan is captain too. My goodness they overbook the heck out of things like this one match. It puts the focus on the battling teammates instead of the story, and then the Raw vs. Smackdown stuff means nothing because there’s still no reason for them to be fighting. Just do Team Miz vs. Team Bryan and Team Corbin vs. Team Angle with some of the people in the champion vs. champion matches included.

Post break Miz and Bryan are bickering when Shane comes in to say they bring out the best in each other. That’s what he’s counting on to win at Survivor Series. By the end of the night, they need to pick their other members. Miz picks Shane and Bryan agrees as Shane leaves. Bryan will get to pick the next member at some point.

New Day vs. Usos

The winners are the captains, because there are totally five Smackdown teams to pick from. After New Day throws a bunch of pancakes into the crowd, Kofi and Jimmy start things off. The Usos are sent outside in a hurry and it’s off to Big E. as Woods plays the trombone and Kofi vibrates on the ropes, allowing E. to run Jimmy over. That was so odd that we need to take a break.

Back with Big E. coming in off the hot tag and throwing some suplexes. The Rock Bottom out of the corner gets two and there’s the Big Ending for two with Jimmy making a very last second save. Kofi tags himself in as Jey avoids a charge to send Big E. outside. Big E. is fine enough to drive Jimmy HARD into the barricade, only to be sent over it himself. With everyone else on the floor, Kofi dives onto both Usos (Graves: “That was falling with style!”) and throws Jey back in for two.

The SOS gets two, followed by a high crossbody for the same as we take a break. Back with Big E. saving Kofi from a double suplex to the floor by spearing Jey through the ropes. Trouble in Paradise hits Jimmy on the apron but the delayed cover only gets two. A superplex is broken up as Jimmy superbombs him down in a huge crash. The Superfly Splash gives Jimmy the pin at 16:14.

Rating: B. Another good match from these guys and it’s nice to see the Usos do something for a change. I still don’t get why they can’t be sent to Raw, just for the sake of having them rock the house with the AOP. It’s not like that show has many teams to go around in the first place and the Usos are too good to have sitting on the sidelines.

Post match the Usos offer New Day a spot on the team. But they’re not CAPTAINS are they?

Miz is on the phone plugging the new Marine movie, but apparently the talk shows want Becky Lynch instead. Bryan comes in to pick Rey Mysterio for his next spot on the Survivor Series team. Miz isn’t impressed, so Bryan lists off everything Mysterio has done since he came back. However, Miz will agree if Mysterio impresses him tonight against Andrade Cien Almas. For the third man, they can each pick someone who will have a match for the final spot.

We see Ronda Rousey’s comments about Becky Lynch on Raw.

Here’s Becky to respond. Ronda has said that she’s the last woman on earth to provoke, but who is Ronda to tell the champ what to do? It’s true that Ronda holds a championship but she’s not a champion. A champion wills herself to keep going but Ronda has never been tested. The truth is that Becky is the man, and that’s why she’s a champion and Ronda isn’t. At Survivor Series, Ronda’s titanium body will be let down by her weak mind.

Lynch has kept fighting every day and is the most relentless person that Rousey has ever met. Becky wasn’t handpicked like Ronda but here she is. The fans cheer her again as Becky says she’s not coming to Survivor Series for Ronda’s respect, but rather the arm. Ronda might be the baddest b**** in the world, but Becky is making Ronda hers. Becky is so fired up that she wants to fight right now. Cue Sanity with Nikki Cross of all people to say she wants to play. I have no idea how this is supposed to make Becky come off as a heel, but I’m sure it’s just going over my head.

Nikki Cross vs. Becky Lynch

Non-title. Becky takes her down to start so Nikki gets up and screams a lot. The fans are behind Nikki as she headscissors Becky to the floor. Some forearms and stomps have Becky in even more trouble on the floor but she trips Nikki onto the apron. Becky whips her into the barricade a few times and it’s time for the chinlock back inside.

A dropkick gives Becky two and the Bexploder has Nikki in the corner. She’s right back with forearms to the chest and the running clotheslines put Becky down again. A high crossbody gives Cross two and a falling reverse DDT gets the same. Becky finally sends the arm into the rope and the Disarm-Her makes Cross tap at 5:36.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure if Nikki is going to be up here full time or not but it’s a nice sign to see her getting in some offense against the champ. She got to show off the insanity well here and even if this is just a one off cameo, at least she’s had the chance to make an impact. Good little match too, even if the ending wasn’t in doubt.

Bryan and Miz pick Jeff Hardy and Samoa Joe for the final match tonight.

Shinsuke Nakamura promises Seth Rollins will take a knee to the face.

Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade Cien Almas

No Zelina Vega, instantly making this less interesting. Mysterio, all banged up from World Cup, flips him down to start but gets elbowed in the face for his efforts. Almas gets two off a kick to the chest but misses a running knee in the corner. The running seated senton off the apron is caught though and Almas swings him into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Mysterio hitting the springboard seated senton and kicking Almas in the head for two.

Rey takes too much time going up top though and gets punched in the face. Almas hits a pair of running knees in the face for two but his moonsault hits knees. The 619 is broken up as well though and they head outside with Mysterio on Almas’ shoulders. That means a hurricanrana into the apron and a sliding tornado DDT (he almost lost Almas but it could have been worse) makes things even worse. Back in and the 619 into the springboard splash finishes Almas at 8:22.

Rating: C+. Perfectly fine match here as Mysterio is certainly getting in some big matches on his return. That’s the reason you bring someone like him back, though I’m sure the losses where he puts people over are coming. I could go for more of Almas, but that doesn’t seem to be what WWE is looking for at the moment.

Post match Randy Orton runs in for an RKO on Mysterio.

Bryan and Miz watch on and Miz agrees that Mysterio can be on the team. If that goes badly though, it’s Bryan’s fault.

Video on WWE partnering with Girl Up.

AJ Styles talks about winning the WWE Championship a year ago right here in Manchester. Now he’s coming up against Brock Lesnar again at Survivor Series. Last year he gave Lesnar everything he had but it just wasn’t enough. Maybe it ends the same way this year, but it’s not easy being a WWE superstar. At Survivor Series, he’s going to beat Lesnar and that’s a spoiler.

Here’s Paige to announce the women’s Survivor Series team. That would be Carmella, Naomi, Sonya Deville, Asuka and Charlotte, each with their own entrance. Well save for Charlotte, who doesn’t come out. Instead here’s Mandy Rose to say she might not be the blonde you’re looking for but she’s an upgrade. Paige says she won’t be taking Charlotte’s place but Mandy isn’t sure about her decision making. If you remember, Mandy eliminated Sonya from the Evolution battle royal but Sonya is on the team anyway.

Mandy insults everyone, including saying Carmella’s dance breaks are like her title reign: short and meaningless and asking if even Jimmy Uso is still feeling the Glow. That’s too much for Naomi so the fight is on with Sonya pulling Mandy off. Mandy stares Sonya down before storming off.

Jeff Hardy vs. Samoa Joe

The winner is on the team and Miz and Bryan are on commentary. Joe goes straight at Hardy in the corner to start and even shouts trash talk at Bryan. Jeff is right back up and tries the Twist of Fate but Joe bails to the floor. Back in and Joe runs him over with an elbow and we take a break. We come back with Joe peppering him with right hands in the corner and the enziguri getting two.

The neck crank keeps Jeff in trouble until Joe takes him outside for a whip into the barricade. This serves as a backdrop for Bryan and Miz’s latest argument, meaning they ignore Jeff walking the barricade for the clothesline. Back in and the basement dropkick gets two on Joe, followed by the Twisting Stunner. The Swanton hits knees (in a great looking crash) and Hardy taps to the Clutch at 9:27.

Rating: C-. This was just going through the motions until the ending and there’s nothing wrong with that, especially given the story here. Joe is the better choice for the spot here, though that landing on the Swanton alone should give Jeff something. Maybe a nice back brace or a full body cast at this point.

Post match Joe talks more trash to Bryan and the fight is on. Miz breaks it up so Bryan beats him up as well, only to have Shane come in for the save. Bryan flips him over, not realizing who it was. Shane is incensed as Bryan walks off to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling was good tonight but my goodness that was one of the most heavy handed shows I’ve ever seen with the battling over being captains taking over the whole show. I still have no idea how I’m supposed to care about this but it’s the same thing on Raw: battling teams with more focus on who is in charge than who is actually in the match. That was the whole focus on this show and it got really annoying, especially when it means we’ll have to hear about bragging rights all next week. Good show wrestling wise, but really tiresome storyline wise.

Results

Usos b. New Day – Superfly Splash to Kingston

Becky Lynch b. Nikki Cross – Disarm-Her

Rey Mysterio b. Andrade Cien Almas – Springboard splash

Samoa Joe b. Jeff Hardy – Koquina Clutch

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-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: November 5, 2018
Location: Manchester Arena, Manchester, England
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

After everything last week, even the wrestlers needed a Monday night off so we have a taped show from earlier in the day. It’s time for the annual November England tour and it happens to be one of the two final shows before Survivor Series. Therefore, it’s time to crank out some stories in a hurry. Let’s get to it.

Here’s Crown Jewel if you need a recap.

The roster is on the stage and there are security guards at ringside as Baron Corbin comes out. After some clips of Brock Lesnar winning the Universal Title again (just go with it), Corbin talks about Survivor Series and lists off some of the upcoming matches. In addition to just winning for pride though, Raw has a score to settle because Shane McMahon stole the title of Best in the World from Dolph Ziggler. Don’t worry though, because Stephanie McMahon will be here next week to deal with that (You knew it was coming.).

As for the men’s Survivor Series match, Corbin has named himself as captain, meaning he won’t be in the actual match. Therefore, he has to put together a great team, which will start with Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre. Another member is Braun Strowman, who might not be happy with Corbin right now. We’ll call Crown Jewel a teaching moment though and Strowman will learn soon enough.

As for the women’s Survivor Series match, the captain will be picking the full team, so here’s Alexa Bliss. She’ll use her leadership as a five time Women’s Champion to pick her team tonight, starting with the Riott Squad vs. Bayley/Sasha Banks/Natalya. Cue Kurt Angle to say he wants to compete again this year, just like last year when he lead Team Raw to victory.

Corbin doesn’t think so because Angle needs to be permanently gone from the show. They reach an agreement: tonight Angle vs. Corbin with the winner getting to be the captain. Angle leaves and Bliss tells the women to get ready but here’s Strowman to storm the ring. Security is dispatched in all of five seconds and Corbin runs off. The roster goes after Strowman as well but he gets through them all while everyone else brawls. In the back, Strowman can’t find Corbin. This ends Exposition Theater, as we fly towards Survivor Series as fast as possible.

Bayley, Sasha and Natalya are ready because Natalya is wearing her dad’s sunglasses.

Bayley/Sasha Banks/Natalya vs. Riott Squad

The Squad jumps them from behind to start but Natalya fights out and blocks an early Riott Kick. The Sharpshooter is on Ruby in the first ten seconds with Logan having to make a save. Logan takes Natalya to the floor and sends her into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Natalya fighting out of the corner and bringing in Banks for some Meteoras, including a top rope version to Morgan.

Riott makes the save and drags Morgan over for the tag. Banks and Bayley hit some running knees, followed by a standing one for good measure. Bayley’s suicide dive drops Logan and Morgan and gets two off a small package on Riott. The chinlock slows Bayley down and Morgan is nice enough to say “Hi Bayley!” Having a match is no reason to not be polite.

Logan’s cobra clutch doesn’t work so she sends Bayley throat first into the middle rope, followed by a middle rope faceplant from Logan. Back from another break with Bayley armdragging Logan and making the hot tag off to Natalya. A faceplant gets two on Logan with Riott making the save.

Rating: D+. This was longer than it needed to be and while the ending was good, the lack of a countout (or even a bell) was kind of annoying. Yeah her sunglasses were broken. Why is the match just ending? Or better question: why is this feud still going? The angle was effective though and I actually cared about Natalya for the first time in forever.

Natalya cries as Bayley and Sasha console her.

Strowman’s hunt continues, including in the locker room and bathroom. Of note: one of the guys in the locker room was Roy Johnson, who wrestled in the first UK Title tournament.

Recap of D-Generation X vs. Brothers of Destruction. Haven’t I suffered enough just watching that match already?

Apollo Crews vs. Jinder Mahal

Before the match, Crews talks about wanting victories in the ring over moral victories. An early dropkick gets two on Mahal but he pulls Crews down into a chinlock. That goes nowhere so it’s a gorilla press into the standing moonsault for the pin on Mahal at 2:21. That’s the year for Mahal: from World Champion to losing to Apollo Crews.

Here’s Seth Rollins, with both Tag Team Titles, for a chat. He knows the three titles look a little weird but it was supposed to be three titles and a big trophy. That brings him to Lesnar, who is slapping everyone in the face by holding Roman Reigns’ title. He would tell Lesnar that to his face, but Lesnar isn’t here tonight. Seth: “Shocker, I know.”

Dean Ambrose is here tonight though and Seth wants him right here in his face. Ambrose isn’t here though and that means Rollins can’t defend the Tag Team Titles by himself. Corbin pops up on screen and, after telling his guys to barricade the door, makes a title match for right now.

Tag Team Titles: AOP vs. Seth Rollins

Rollins is defending and starts with Akam, who drives him into the wrong corner. Rezar comes in and blasts Rollins with a clothesline as the numbers are already becoming a problem. Back from a break with Rollins fighting out of a chinlock but getting taken down and pummeled without much effort. The Last Chapter is broken up and Rezar is clotheslined to the floor for a suicide dive.

Back in and Akam is sent outside for a double suicide dive in a rather nice hope spot. A Sling Blade hits Rezar back inside and it’s time to stomp the foot. Drake Maverick offers a distraction but the side slam/middle rope stomp is broken up. Rollins knees Rezar in the face and hits the frog splash for two but the stomp is countered into a heck of a powerbomb. The powerbomb/neckbreaker gives us new champions at 9:47.

Rating: C. They had to do something with the titles and putting the titles on these monsters is as good of an idea as they had. Rollins made a go of it though and that was far more entertaining than I was expecting. AOP will be fine and can run through some teams until someone finally derails them. Not a bad match here, with Rollins trying as hard as he could.

Post match here’s Ambrose to say Rollins wants to know why. Rollins asks why and gets hit with Dirty Deeds.

Renee Young finally comments on the thing, saying Dean won’t talk about it even to her. That’s all they needed to say.

We look at Becky Lynch calling out Ronda Rousey last week on Smackdown. She won’t be intimidated like everyone else.

We look at Strowman hunting for Corbin.

Corbin has a makeshift studio in the storage room when Strowman storms in. Security is dispatched, with one of them holding onto Strowman’s leg as he drags the guy along.

Here’s Dolph Ziggler to claim a conspiracy against him in the World Cup. First Drew McIntyre was ejected and then everyone’s favorite D-Lister is replaced by Shane McMahon of all people. Cue Elias to interrupt and the fans are VERY glad to see him. He was just on the phone with Liam and Noel Gallagher, who said if Elias sings the right song tonight, Oasis will reunite. Ziggler doesn’t want to hear it but Elias sings anyway. That earns him a challenge and we’re ready to go.

Elias vs. Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler headlocks and dropkicks him to start as the fans don’t seem pleased. Elias fights up but gets elbowed in the face as the announcers talk about the tournament having a bit of a screwy ending. Ziggler cranks on the arm for a good while until Elias gets up and kicks him down. A top rope elbow misses Ziggler and we take a break. Back with Ziggler holding a chinlock and uppercutting Elias for two.

The chinlock goes on again because this match hasn’t been boring enough already. Elias gets up (again) and hammers away with some right hands and forearms but Ziggler avoids the jumping knee. The second jumping knee connects for two and a sitout powerbomb gives Elias two more. Ziggler headbutts him and the Zig Zag is good for two more with Elias getting a foot on the rope. Back up and Drift Away is good for the pin on Ziggler at 14:21.

Rating: D-. This was awful and one of the most lifeless matches I’ve ever seen. I’m sure you can chalk a lot of it up to jet lag but my goodness they were in slow motion and doing a lot of chinlocks out there. Elias needs some dominant wins somewhere in this face turn as he’s just taking beatings and then winning in the end. These guys can do better but this was horrible.

Angle isn’t worried because a fire has been lit inside of him to go and be Raw team captain.

Here’s Ronda Rousey for a chat. Last week on Smackdown, Becky Lynch threatened to rip her arm off. It’s easy to see why people love Becky and there’s a quick chant for her. Ronda respects her, but Becky has no idea what’s going on. While Becky’s mom was waking her up for school, Ronda’s mom was waking her up trying to break her arm. While Becky was a stewardess, Ronda was in the most dominant title reign of all time.

Rousey wants her to bring all of her rage in two weeks because Ronda wants a challenge at Survivor Series. Becky can call herself the man but Rousey is the baddest b**** on the planet. Ronda goes to leave but here’s Nia Jax to interrupt. Nia tells her to be ready because she’s fighting for “the most dominant brand in sports entertainment” at Survivor Series. When she’s done, Nia will be waiting on her.

Video on WWE working with Girl Up, a charity to promote young girls in sports.

Nia Jax vs. Ember Moon

Ember kicks her down to one knee to start but the crossbody literally bounces off of Nia. Another throw has Ember in trouble and it’s off to a chinlock. Nia drops her face first onto the top turnbuckle but misses the legdrop. The kicks have Nia in trouble and the springboard spinning crossbody gets two. There’s a discus forearm for two more but the Samoan drop finishes Ember at 4:55.

Rating: D+. Again, I ask what the point was in bringing Ember up to the main roster. They had her show up on the Raw after Wrestlemania and I don’t think she’s won a major match since. She was trying here and the match wasn’t terrible, but this has already been one of the most lifeless shows I can remember in a long time. They didn’t have much of a chance out there.

Post match freaking Tamina comes out….and beats up Ember as Nia joins forces with her. I guess it’s better than them fighting. Nia screams that she won and jumps up and down.

Finn Balor isn’t worried about Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush because Manchester is Balor Club.

Corbin gets in his car because he has an emergency appointment. Angle can face Drew McIntyre instead. Strowman shows up as Corbin gets away.

Finn Balor vs. Bobby Lashley

Before the match, Lio says he wishes they were in Liverpool and says Michelangelo couldn’t create a work of art like Lashley. See, he respects Manchester, so he’s going to pretend that Balor is every single person in this city. Lashley chokes on the ropes to start as the announcers talk about the tournament. A missed charge lets Balor hit a dropkick to the ropes but Rush trips him up.

That means a chinlock for a bit until Balor gets up for a sunset flip. Balor slips out of a powerbomb but gets caught by the vertical suplex for two (Kicking out of a finisher!). An enziguri looks to set up the Coup de Grace but Rush offers a distraction. Lashley gets sent outside so Balor dropkicks Rush. He takes too long on the floor though and gets caught by Lashley, followed by the spinning Dominator for the pin at 6:29.

Rating: D. Hey remember when Balor beat Lashley twice, including one off a clean pin? Well none of that matters because Lashley won the third match with help from his manager. This was another lifeless match in a series of them and that’s one of the last things this show needed. It’s more 50/50 booking and, as usual, that helps no one.

Post match Drew McIntyre comes out for a staredown with Lashley and the fans seem intrigued. Lashley leaves and Drew helps Balor up before kicking him in the face.

Next week, Stephanie McMahon is here, Alexa announces the Raw women’s Survivor Series team and Brock Lesnar will actually show up.

Drew McIntyre vs. Kurt Angle

If Angle wins, he’s team captain at Survivor Series. Angle jumps him before the bell but McIntyre blasts him with a headbutt. We hit the armbar, which might actually cause Angle’s arm to come off his body. A neckbreaker sets up a second armbar but Angle pops up with an Angle Slam to put McIntyre on the floor.

Back from a break with McIntyre hitting a suplex and putting on a third armbar. McIntyre picks him up…..and the armbar goes on again. Angle fights out of it (probably due to familiarity) and rolls the German suplexes. The Claymore kicks Angle’s head off….and Drew doesn’t cover. OH MY GOODNESS JUST END THE SHOW ALREADY!!! Angle goes for the leg but Drew pounds him down and glares at him again.

To really show off, Drew sticks his leg out so Angle lunches again, earning himself another beatdown. Drew calls Angle an embarrassment and now the ankle lock goes on. The hold is kicked off and Drew gives him an Angle Slam before sitting in the middle of the ring instead of covering. Drew puts him in an ankle lock with the grapevine and Kurt taps at 14:36.

Rating: D. They had an idea here with McIntyre wanting to humiliate Angle but egads how many times can we see Old Man Angle get beaten down like this? It wasn’t really interesting the first time and this was a long match to end an already awful show. This was much more about the storytelling than the wrestling and Drew played the heel well, but it was the wrong place and the wrong time.

Overall Rating: F+. I don’t know if it was the exhaustion from the crazy schedule over the last week (though that has been a nightmare of WWE’s own creating) or the jet lag or just the show being taped but I haven’t been begging for a show to end like this in a long time. A seven match show with three rematches from within the last eight days is inexcusable, especially when one of them was a trilogy match.

And in case we haven’t done enough lately, next week is a go home show where we’ll have to listen to Heyman talk about how important Survivor Series is and Stephanie talk about how she won’t let her brother humiliate her or whatever her latest screeching moment is. It feels like they need a vacation right now and things are likely to be just as exhausted next week when they have a Saturday show in Rome and have to be back in America on Monday for Raw. This was a really bad show though and a lot of it seems to be from pure exhaustion and overload.

Results

Bayley/Sasha Banks/Natalya vs. Riott Squad went to a no contest

Apollo Crews b. Jinder Mahal – Standing moonsault

AOP b. Seth Rollins – Powerbomb/neckbreaker combination

Elias b. Dolph Ziggler – Drift Away

Nia Jax b. Ember Moon – Samoan drop

Bobby Lashley b. Finn Balor – Spinning Dominator

Drew McIntyre b. Kurt Angle – Ankle lock

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Survivor Series 2005
Date: November 27, 2005
Location: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Attendance: 15,000
Commentators: Joey Styles, Jerry Lawler, Jonathan Coachman, Michael Cole, Tazz

Booker T. vs. Chris Benoit

Benoit fights up and starts the Germans, only to eat another kick to the face. A quick dragon screw leg whip looks to set up the Sharpshooter but Booker rolls him up for two. More rolling Germans look to set up the Swan Dive but Sharmell offers a distraction, only to have Benoit headbutt Booker down. The Swan Dive misses anyway and Booker grabs a rollup with his feet on the ropes (and Sharmell holding them there) to win the first match in the series.

Detroit Tiger Dmitri Young is here.

Ric Flair vs. HHH

Last man standing. HHH jumps him in the aisle before Flair can even get his robe off. They get inside with Flair in big trouble, made even worse by HHH grabbing a chair. Flair comes back with a kendo stick, which really looks weird in his hands. They brawl to the hockey boards with HHH taking over again and bringing it back to ringside. Flair is up at seven after a backdrop on the floor and an elbow to the back makes Flair swear a lot.

Flair goes out on a stretcher.

Trish and Mickie are online.

Raw World Title: Kurt Angle vs. John Cena

Cena gets sent into the steps and a second referee comes in to count two. Well you knew there was going to be a way around Daivari. Kurt grabs a waistlock before throwing Cena hard into the corner to keep him in trouble. The fans are ALL OVER Cena and another suplex gives Kurt two. Off to something like an STF on Cena but Kurt goes to a regular chinlock instead. Cena fights up and grab a DDT without selling the ankle injury one bit. The champ wins a slugout and initiates his finishing sequence, including pumping up the shoes.

Eric Bischoff vs. Teddy Long

The Raw and Smackdown teams are cheered on by their respective rosters.

Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown

Raw: Big Show, Kane, Shawn Michaels, Carlito, Chris Masters

Smackdown: Rey Mysterio, Bobby Lashley, Batista, Randy Orton, John Bradshaw Layfield

Orton is quickly sent to the floor for a big dive as things speed up. Back in and some clotheslines set up the top rope elbow as the fans want Undertaker (who was advertised for the show). JBL tries to come in with a chair but eats a superkick, setting up the RKO to give Smackdown the pin.

Ratings Comparison

Booker T vs. Chris Benoit

Original: B

2012 Redo: B-

2015 Redo: B+

Trish Stratus vs. Melina

Original: B

2012 Redo: C-

2015 Redo: D+

HHH vs. Ric Flair

Original: B-

2012 Redo: B+

2015 Redo: B

John Cena vs. Kurt Angle

Original: B+

2012 Redo: C

2015 Redo: B-

Theodore Long vs. Eric Bischoff

Original: O (For Oh I can’t think about this anymore)

2012 Redo: S (For Six Minutes)

Team Smackdown vs. Team Raw

Original: B

2012 Redo: B

2015 Redo: B+

Overall Rating

Original: B

2012 Redo: B

2015 Redo: A-

I’m surprised by how much more I liked the girls and Cena vs. Angle. They’re good but they’re not that good. Still a solid show though.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/11/14/history-of-survivor-series-count-up-2005-a-forgotten-almost-classic/

And the redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2012/11/11/survivor-series-count-up-2012-edition-2005-raw-vs-smackdown/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

So a few months ago, I did a few columns where I answered a bunch of questions every week.  It turns out that writing a ten page column in addition to everything else I did was a little insane and I dropped the whole thing.  However, I can always find the time to answer a question or two so I might as well take a shot at it.  This is going to be COMPLETELY informal and I have no idea how often I’ll do it, but if someone asks me a question over on Steel Cage Forums (steelcageforums.com.  Check it out if you haven’t yet as it’s quite good.) or in the comments here that isn’t something that can be answered in a sentence or less, I might do something like this.  So here’s one from the forum:

For the sake of simplicity, we’ll assume Rock stays on Smackdown, where he was when he left.

Oh dear this is a big one. In short, yes we would have but at the same time, things would have been a little different. For the sake of sanity, we’ll assume that most things didn’t change for the most part, as it’s almost impossible to guess how things go otherwise. Therefore, the Brand Split would have kept Orton and Batista over on Raw, where they could grow into superstars on their own.

That leaves Cena, who is easily the most interesting case out of everyone here. I’m a pretty strong believe in the concept of the talent rising to the top and Cena would have found something in there eventually. Rock would have been the top star on one of the shows, but Cena was going to sneak in there eventually and become the next big thing in wrestling, but there would have been a delay.

When Cena and Batista won their first World Titles at Wrestlemania XXI, Batista was the bigger star. He might not have had the same longevity, but he was the bigger deal at the time. Assuming he rises to the top of Raw in the same way, that leaves Cena to….I’m not really sure. You can almost guarantee that there’s no JBL title run because no one is buying JBL laying a finger on Rock. As long as Rock doesn’t mock Cena’s rapping and eviscerate him on the mic, Cena could have risen up and become the new anti-authority character, but it would have taken longer.

The other thing to remember about Rock is the same problem that would happen to anyone: eventually he would have cooled off. Rock was a six time WWF Champion by the time he was 29. With Austin gone and HHH boring the life out of everyone, there was no one in Rock’s universe and that can only last so long. It happened to Hogan, it happened to Austin, and it would have happened to Rock too.

At some point he would need someone fresh to face and maybe that’s Cena. I’m not sure how well a passing of the torch match would have gone (because they almost never work) but Rock would have had to do something. You can only dominate people for so long before you start losing momentum. Maybe Batista becomes a rival for Rock later on and one of them moves, leaving Cena to stay off on his own. There are a million ways to go, but Rock would have needed someone fresh to face and that’s really hard to do when Rock was that much ahead of everyone else.

So yeah, the talent would have risen to the top, but Cena would have taken a little longer because it took him a lot longer to become the top star. It would have happened though.

IMG Credit: WWE

Fusion #29
Date: November 2, 2018
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Matt Striker, Tony Schiavone

It’s time to get back to the regular shows this week after last week’s Halloween special. Things could be a little more interesting this time around as the Hart Foundation is back, which should make for a rather different kind of show. Fightland is coming up soon enough too so we should get some build towards the big show. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look back at Shane Strickland vs. Tom Lawlor with Low Ki costing Shane the win. Lawlor said he would cash in his World Title shot in February, so Sami Callihan attacked him at a media event while Low Ki watched. As usual with MLW: simple story, but it makes sense and leads to matches I wouldn’t mind seeing.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Konnan for a chat. After sucking up to the crowd, Konnan says a witch named Salina de la Renta kept Pentagon and Rey Fenix from being here so here are Salina and Ricky Martinez to cut him off. Salina isn’t happy with Konnan for stealing her talent so she’s had them deported back to Mexico. Konnan refers to Martinez as Ricky Vega, which doesn’t sit well with him. That’s not cool with Martinez, who Konnan calls an Amish gnome Duck Dynasty reject. Anyway it’s time for a match with Konnan bringing in Martinez’s opponent.

Ricky Martinez vs. Puma King

I’ve heard of King before so this could be interesting. Puma runs him over a few times before rolling into the corner for an enziguri to the floor. That means the dive to take Martinez down again, followed by a high crossbody for two. The expected Salina interference lets Martinez kick the ropes for a low blow and there are the Madison Rayne crotch thrusts to drive Puma into the mat.

Martinez is bleeding from the nose and Puma superkicking him makes things even worse. It doesn’t seem to matter that much though as Martinez hits a Backstabber as Striker explains that a broken nose can mess with your vision. Now isn’t that better than him making insider references and talking about how much people hate him?

The Alberto top rope double stomp (I’m looking forward to that going away) is countered with a superplex and a top rope seated dropkick (that’s a new one) gives Puma two. Martinez is right back up with a super Codebreaker (the Plasma Crunch, an awesome name) for two of his own. They head up again but Martinez’s superplex is countered into a superbomb, followed by la majistral for the pin at 5:09.

Rating: C. I liked this one more than I was expecting with both guys looking good and King getting in a very nice debut. Martinez is little more than a bodyguard but he did well here too with some nice power stuff. Every now and then it’s a lot of fun to have a surprisingly good match and that’s what we got here.

Tommy Dreamer, now in a Randy Savage shirt, says he’s ready to show that he’s still the king of extreme, no matter what Brody King thinks. King has no idea what it takes to really be hardcore but Dreamer has seen the fans through the blood in his eyes, making him get up.

Stokely Hathaway is back at Fightland.

Jason Cade doesn’t think it’s fair that he and Jimmy Yuta are both getting the Middleweight Title shot when he already beat Yuta. Fair point.

Yuta is ready to win the title.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman isn’t happy with the lack of respect around here. He’s cool with letting Yuta and Cade beat each other up and then pin both of them.

Brody King vs. Tommy Dreamer

The much bigger King shoulders him down to start as we hear about Dreamer’s litany of injuries. Dreamer’s right hands don’t have much effect so they head outside (What took them so long?) with Dreamer being thrown into the barricade. Back in and they chop it out with Brody getting the better of it, including a Vader Bomb for two. The front facelock doesn’t last long and King misses the middle rope moonsault to make things even worse.

Back up and they forearm each other a lot until Dreamer snaps off a cutter for two. A swinging Rock Bottom gives King two and Dreamer’s DDT gets the same, albeit with a foot on the ropes for the save this time. With the wrestling not working, Dreamer grabs the cheese grater. The referee picks now to wipe his eyes so it’s a low blow to slow Dreamer down, setting up a piledriver to give King the pin at 7:42.

Rating: D. I’ve made my thoughts on Dreamer clear over the years but at least this wasn’t Dreamer getting a big win or a big push and only consisted of hearing about his injuries again. I can more than live with him in this role, though it was still nothing all that worthwhile. King is good for a role, but I’m not sure how much he can do in matches like this.

We look at the media day attack again.

Lawlor says he’s been beaten down but not beaten. Salina must be scared if she’s sending Callihan after him and all he wants is to get his hands on Low Ki. The gold is the goal, but Low Ki can be the first treasure on the way there.

Fightland rundown, including Callihan vs. Lawlor in a street fight. The show now features about ten matches, most of which we’ll see on TV later.

Callihan thinks Lawlor is stupid for wanting a fight. Anyone else Callihan has set his sights on has gone away and Lawlor will be no different. Lawlor may be an MMA fighter but Callihan can run him over with a car.

Hart Foundation vs. ACH/Marko Stunt/Rich Swann

Stunt is a small guy who is probably shorter than Rey Mysterio. Pillman and ACH start things off as Striker talks about Pillman’s pretty solid training so far. A neckbreaker and spinning shot to the neck have ACH in trouble so he snaps off a dropkick to send Pillman away. Hart comes in (complete with the awesome face) and starts flipping around with Swann. A dropkick puts Hart down for a second but he picks up the pace and snaps off a good looking powerslam.

Stunt comes in and uses Swann as a launchpad for a Codebreaker to Hart, only to dance into the massive (by comparison) Smith. For some reason Stunt tries a slam, earning himself a torture rack. In an impressive power display, Smith launches Stunt at Swann and ACH (I know Stunt is small, but that’s still impressive) and dropkicks him in the back to put all three down. The nip up back to his feet is just a bonus. Hart isn’t cool with this waiting around and moonsaults down onto everyone in a crazy good looking dive.

Back in and Smith slams Stunt down like a toy and puts a boot on the chest for two. An assisted Canadian Destroyer plants Stunt and a top rope moonsault (from the middle of the rope instead of the corner) from Hart crushes him again. Hart makes it even worse with a snapdragon that flips Stunt over in a nasty crash.

Pillman gets two off a Michinoku Driver but Stunt slips out of a suplex and brings in ACH. See, that’s the kind of escape that makes sense because the Harts weren’t really looking to finish him (either not covering or arrogant covers) and Stunt finally tagged almost by accident. That makes the Harts looks careless and doesn’t go too far beyond being realistic. Much better than you get in situations like this a lot of the time.

ACH makes the mistake of going after the illegal Hart and gets dropkicked off the apron. The ensuing double teaming doesn’t last long as ACH rolls over for the tag to Swann for a double Lethal Injection. Swann and ACH hit stereo dives but Stunt’s Asai moonsault is caught in midair and Smith drives him back first into the post. You don’t do that to Swann’s partner so he superkicks the heck out of Smith, followed by a very high frog splash for two on Pillman.

Hart hits a top rope DDT on ACH, leaving Smith to put Stunt on his shoulders for a DOOMSDAY CANADIAN DESTROYER (that actually made my jaw drop). Open Hart Surgery (Spinal Tap) crushes what used to be Stunt….for two as Swann makes the save. Swann kicks Swann and Smith down, followed by the middle rope 450 with Pillman making a save of his own. There are too many Harts though and it’s a powerbomb/Blockbuster combo to finish Swann at 12:14.

Rating: B-. Oh they messed up that ending. The Doomsday Destroyer was one of the coolest moves I’ve seen in a very long time and there was zero reason for the save from Swann. You have Stunt there to take a beating and almost nothing more, so why in the world would you have Swann take the pin here? On the positive side, the Harts continue to be outstanding and one of my favorite things about the roster. It’s a good match with an incredible spot (that looked clean too) but dang they should have gone home a minute earlier.

Overall Rating: C. This is the same kind of show they had a few weeks ago and it worked here too. They weren’t focusing on the main event stories here but they treated what we saw as important. How often do you see shows like this treated as nothing, therefore making everything look bad by comparison? It’s an easy show to watch and I had a good time watching it, especially the main event.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-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: November 1, 2018
Location: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, North Carolina
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

It’s the final show before Crown Jewel, meaning it’s going to be a lot of focus on that show, again without saying where it actually takes place. In addition to all that though, it would be nice if we could have something fresh for the original content, which has been the case around here lately. That’s a nice way to help the show going forward and hopefully it happens again here. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Titus O’Neil vs. Mojo Rawley

They go straight to the power lockup to start with neither being able to get anywhere. Some right hands sends Mojo bailing to the floor and a dog bark fills in the time. Back in and Mojo gets in a shot out of the corner, followed by a hard clothesline. The chinlock goes on, and then the chinlock goes on again to keep things fresh. Titus fights up and drives him into the corner for a splash. Mojo is right back with the clothesline to the floor but Titus calmly comes back in and hits the Clash of the Titus for the pin at 5:04.

Rating: D. I know Mojo isn’t the best guy in the world but egads man, this is how far he’s fallen? You really don’t have anything better for him than losing to Titus on Main Event? Just a few months ago he was on Raw and feuding with a former US Champion. It’s not like he’s that bad and the energy alone should get him some more respect than this.

From Raw.

You know something big is happening in the Super Bowl, the Stanley Cup Finals and the Academy Awards, but this time you know for a fact what’s coming. Cue Braun Strowman to say Lesnar is going to get these hands. Corbin tries to separate them and gets powerslammed. Lesnar and Strowman stare each other down until another powerslam leaves Corbin laying. Brock picks up the title and puts it on his shoulder so Corbin gets powerslammed again. That means an F5 for Strowman and Brock poses. Just a hype segment for the title match and it was fine.

We look at Roman Reigns vacating the Universal Title.

We look at Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins winning the Tag Team Titles, followed by Ambrose turning on Rollins in a great angle.

From Raw.

Here’s Rollins without the Tag Team Title to thank the fans for all the support they’ve given Reigns. Last week was a crazy night that ended with him winning half of the Tag Team Titles. Then his best friend turned on him and maybe it was Seth’s fault. Maybe Ambrose couldn’t forgive Seth for four years ago when Rollins did the same thing to him.

The only person who can answer that is Dean himself but if Ambrose doesn’t want to be found, he’s not going to be found. However, Rollins knew he could find Ambrose here so if he wants the spotlight so badly, come out here and get it. Ambrose’s music plays but no one comes out. Ambrose pops up in the crowd without saying anything so Seth says at least he faced Dean like a man when he turned his back on him.

Dean comes down a few steps but still won’t say anything. Seth yells about Dean spitting on them on the most emotional night in the history of the Shield. Dean made it all about himself and now he has the spotlight, plus all of Seth’s attention from now on. With nothing being said, Seth goes up the aisle after him but Dean gets out having never said a word. They’ve got something here and watching Dean and Seth tear into each other could be amazing.

Stills of Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte at Evolution.

B Team vs. Rhyno/Heath Slater

The B Team is still a thing. Who knew? Axel takes Slater into the corner to start but lets him out with a clean break. Slater sends him right back into the corner and does the West Virginia dancing. That actually seems to impress Axel but he runs Slater down anyway. Axel takes him into the corner for some stomping before it’s off to Dallas vs. Rhyno. Dallas gets chinlocked for a bit, followed by a hard whip into the corner.

It’s back to Slater, who also whips him hard into the corner. Rhyno adds some clotheslines but misses a charge in the corner, allowing the hot (I think?) tag to Axel. House is cleaned and the PerfectPlex gets two on Slater with Rhyno making the save. Dallas knocks Rhyno outside and it’s a sunset flip to finish Slater at 5:57.

Rating: D+. It’s almost weird to see Slater and Rhyno as the de facto heels, though it wouldn’t be the worst idea in the world to turn them. It’s not like the division really exists at the moment so throw in a fresh heel team just to put some other teams over. The match was actually fine enough and both teams still have some (albeit low) value.

Video on Kurt Angle, who wants to be the Best in the World.

From Raw.

Here are Kane, because running Knoxville is a part time job at best, and Undertaker for the big closing segment. The fans chant for Undertaker, who says it’s not easy to reach the end. But when the reaper calls, no matter how hard you fight, it’s your time to go. I’ll let it sink in that UNDERTAKER is talking about how you have to go when your time is up. Kane says what started as a whisper has now become a deafening cry.

This Friday at Crown Jewel (minor booing), the Brothers will take the battered souls of DX to the firey gates. It will be the end of DX’s error, but that’s on Friday. Tonight, DX is being summoned to the ring right now to have their souls destroyed. Cue HHH (with glow sticks, because WWE can’t decide if this is supposed to be serious or fun) without Shawn so Kane goes up the ramp after him, allowing Shawn to sneak in and superkick Undertaker. DX bails as Undertaker sits up (after going down from something he shouldn’t fall for) to end the show.

Overall Rating: F. Are you kidding me? You have a (great) World Title match on Smackdown and the setup of another World Title match and it can’t even get some stills? Instead we see clips from two weeks ago and the World Cup video from Angle? That’s more important than the oldest title in WWE? This is how WWE presents Smackdown and then wants us to care about a Raw vs. Smackdown pay per view? Come on people.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Survivor Series 2004
Date: November 14, 2004
Location: Gund Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Attendance: 7,500
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Tazz

We open with a video about the seventeen years this show has run already.

Cruiserweight Title: Spike Dudley vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero vs. Billy Kidman

Intercontinental Title: Shelton Benjamin vs. Christian

Team Angle vs. Team Guerrero

Kurt Angle, Carlito Caribbean Cool, Luther Reigns, Mark Jindrak

Eddie Guerrero, John Cena, Rob Van Dam, Big Show

Maven (the first Tough Enough winner and on Team Orton tonight in the biggest match of his career) offers to demonstrate his skills to Coach but Snitsky jumps Maven and busts him open. This would be how they would keep Maven out of a PPV main event for most of the match when they realized that he was in WAY over his head.

Heidenreich vs. Undertaker

Heidenreich comes out in a straightjacket because he might attack more plants, as had been his custom in recent weeks. Undertaker does the big long entrance to get the crowd back into things. He stares at Heidenreich for a few moments before the beating begins. A charge in the corner runs into a Heidenreich elbow but the Dead Man will have none of this being on defense stuff. Undertaker works on the arm but a Heyman distraction lets Heidenreich crotch Undertaker to break up Old School. He crotches Undertaker against the post again and we head to the floor.

The chokeslam is broken up and Heidenreich gets two off a Boss Man Slam. Then like an idiot, Heidenreich punches away in the corner while Undertaker arms are down. The obvious Last Ride only gets two though as Heidenreich grabs the rope. Heidenreich tries a sleeper but Undertaker is like boy please and suplexes out of it almost immediately. The chokeslam and Tombstone finish this quick.

Bischoff says Maven is out of the main event and if he allows Orton to add a replacement, HHH will complain and Eric will lose his vacation, which is the point of the main event.

Smackdown World Title: John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Booker T

Batista and HHH are ready for the main event.

Team HHH vs. Team Orton

HHH, Edge, Batista, Gene Snitsky

Randy Orton, Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit, Maven

Ratings Comparison

Spike Dudley vs. Billy Kidman vs. Chavo Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio

Original: C+

Redo: B-

Shelton Benjamin vs. Christian

Original: B

Redo: B

Team Guerrero vs. Team Angle

Original: D

Redo: C+

Undertaker vs. Heidenreich

Original: D

Redo: D

Trish Stratus vs. Lita

Original: N/A

Redo: N/A

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Booker T

Original: F

Redo: D

Team Orton vs. Team HHH

Original: B-

Redo: B

Overall Rating

Original: C-

Redo: B-

In a rare instance, I liked this a lot better the second time around.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/11/13/history-of-survivor-series-count-up-2004-eyebrows-huffman-main-events/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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