Smackdown
Date: October 10, 2017
Location: Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Commentators: Corey Graves, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

We’re past the Cell and that means it’s time to get ready for Survivor Series. The big story though is Sami Zayn seemingly turning to join Kevin Owens, though the reasoning could be very interesting. Other than that we have Jinder Mahal in need of a new challenger as he’s still the Smackdown World Champion. Let’s get to it.

We open with a long video on the end of Shane vs. Owens, including Sami saving Kevin.

Opening sequence.

Here are the very sore Usos to open things up. They knew something would change inside the Cell and now they have something to say to New Day. The trio comes out and the five of them make it very clear: they’re the best tag teams Smackdown has to offer. Every time they get together, it’s Ali vs. Frazier in the biggest match in the world.

These people didn’t see the Usos limping to the next town and walking to the hotel where the people ask them if they’re going to be ok. They have to tell their kids that everything is fine and then they go to the next town. No one but New Day understands that and that means they respect the three of them. Handshakes are loaded up but here are the Hype Bros to interrupt.

Mojo Rawley complains about the same teams dominating every week. Jimmy: “Mojo, go sit on the sidelines like you did for your NFL career.” Shelton Benjamin and Chad Gable come out to say they’re the ones at the front of the line. The Usos are impressed by Shelton’s credentials but say go to the back of the line.

Cue Breezango and then the Ascension with Breezango asking them to stop following them. The Usos say they’re going to lock up the other teams. Well save for Breezango because they’re cool. Jimmy: “I like the Fashion Files too.” This brings out Daniel Bryan to say this isn’t a good night. The four teams that want shots can have a fatal four way RIGHT NOW to crown new #1 contenders.

Ascension vs. Breezango vs. Hype Bros vs. Shelton Benjamin/Chad Gable

One fall to a finish. Gable and Benjamin work on Viktor’s arm to start and Shelton drops an elbow for two. An armbar keeps Viktor down until it’s off to Konnor for a knee to the face. Everyone comes in to save Gable and we take a break. Back with Rawley running Breeze over and everything breaking down again.

Ryder comes in for the Hype Ryder but Viktor shoves him into Rawley. Konnor shoves Rawley into Viktor, leaving Breeze to grab a rollup for two. The Broski Boot misses and it’s Shelton tagging himself in but the powerbomb/clotheslines combination misses. Fandango misses the Last Dance and it’s a moonsault from Gable. Now the powerbomb/clothesline combination puts Breeze away at 9:21.

Rating: C. This was too busy for the amount of time they had and I would have gone with Breezango getting the shot (or at least not taking the pin), though this is the second best option. It’s true that we need some fresh challengers and Gable/Benjamin are better choices than a lot of their other options. Oh and I guess this means no Fashion Files tonight either.

Sami and Kevin aren’t ready to talk yet.

We look at Natalya cheating to retain her title on Sunday.

Lana says Tamina will be taking the title from Natalya, who laughs it off. Carmella and Charlotte come in with Natalya saying Charlotte disappointed her dad all over again. A brawl breaks out with Charlotte getting the best of it.

Baron Corbin is glad he disappointed the keyboard warriors on Sunday and will be glad to do it again tonight.

Becky Lynch vs. Carmella

Becky wastes no time in taking Carmella down and hammering away. Carmella bails but hides behind Ellsworth, allowing her to get in a kick to Becky’s knee. Back in and we hit the chinlock for a bit but Becky pops back up and sends her into the corner. The Disarm-Her ends Carmella at 2:59.

Here’s Owens, now billed as victorious, for his big speech. Owens says he did exactly what he promised to do on Sunday night when he destroyed Shane once and for all. The fans almost lost him on Sunday too though as he saw the white light. Then he was standing in line at the pearly gates and St. Peter called him to the front of the line. They would love to have him up there but he’s needed more down on earth. Therefore he’s still here, complete with his own guardian angel in the form of Sami Zayn. Now his purpose is to turn Smackdown into his own personal paradise, which is why we’re here on the Kevin Owens Show.

This brings out a dancing Sami, who still does his same energetic entrance but with a bit of a smug look on his face. Kevin thanks Sami for everything he’s done but Sami needs to thank Owens. It was that apron powerbomb a few weeks ago that made Sami see everything for what it really was. He tried to please everyone and it brought him to mediocrity. During that time, Owens won all the titles he wanted but Sami still got to sleep at night. Yeah!

Maybe, if he keeps doing the right thing for 4-5 years, his time will come. Then he came to the land of opportunity and he heard about how Raw had been mistreating him. Shane gave him a big song and dance about how awesome things were going to be and that’s the last meeting he had with the new boss. That brings us to Sunday, where Sami was watching the match and Shane had Owens beat. Owens has been a lot of things to Sami over the years but he’ll always be Sami’s brother. On Sunday, Sami saved his brother. They take turns saying give it up for the other and it’s a big love fest.

Rusev/Aiden English vs. Randy Orton/Shinsuke Nakamura

English has to save Rusev from an early hanging DDT and they head outside for the opening brawl. Rusev gets dropped onto the announcers’ table as we take a break. Back with Orton fighting out of Rusev’s bodyscissors and kicking English away for the hot tag to Nakamura. Rusev breaks up Kinshasa but gets the RKO for his efforts. Now Kinshasa can finish English at 5:58. Not enough to rate but the second half was a glorified squash.

AJ Styles is ready to win the US Title back tonight.

Erick Rowan and Luke Harper, both in hooded cloaks and carrying big hammers, say there is no conscious or moral compass. The wicked will rise and there will be broken bones and severed spines. Their name seems to be the Bludgeon Brothers. I’ve heard of worse actually.

Here’s Bobby Roode to call out Dolph Ziggler for attacking him after their match on Sunday. If Ziggler wants to fight, come out here right now. Cue Ziggler, whose music and video again cut off, to say Roode looked like a million bucks before the match. Then the bell rang and Ziggler dominated until Roode cheated to win. Ziggler wants a rematch anywhere anytime so Roode says come on. You know the drill: Ziggler comes close to the ring and says on his time. This feud really doesn’t need to continue and Ziggler is just killing anything positive about it.

Roode vs. Ziggler II is official for next week.

US Title: AJ Styles vs. Baron Corbin

Corbin won the title on Sunday. AJ wastes no time in dropkicking Baron outside before sending him to the floor again. Back from an early break with Corbin doing his slide underneath the ropes into the hard clothesline. Corbin misses a charge and gets caught in the ropes though, allowing AJ to slug away. The Phenomenal Blitz staggers Corbin and a dropkick to the knee takes him down again.

Baron slides to the floor and a heck of a baseball slide knocks him over the announcers’ table in a heap. Back in and the fireman’s carry backbreaker gives AJ two but Corbin sends him hard into the buckle. AJ comes right back with the Calf Crusher but Corbin heads outside again and catches AJ diving off the apron in a powerslam. Back in and End of Days retains Corbin’s title at 11:55.

Rating: C+. The ending is a bit of a surprise but it lets Corbin be done with Styles and move on to something else, presumably the World Title scene. Corbin is in need of some challengers, and I wouldn’t be shocked if it wound up being Nakamura. It’s not like he has anything else going on at the moment.

Post match Corbin says the title is his and it’s not going anywhere. He’ll buy a boat and float down a river of your tears. No one comes out and we’re done.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a lot better than I was expecting (Shane and Jinder being gone is just a coincidence I’m sure), capped off by that great Sami promo. They’ve got something here if they’re smart enough to pull it off, though if Mahal is still one of the featured attractions they’re only going to get so far. The wrestling was a nice addition but it certainly wasn’t the focus of the show tonight.

Results

Shelton Benjamin/Chad Gable b. Ascension, Breezango and Hype Bros – Powerslam/Top rope clothesline combination to Breeze

Becky Lynch b. Carmella – Disarm-Her

Randy Orton/Shinsuke Nakamura b. Rusev/Aiden English – Kinshasa to English

Baron Corbin b. AJ Styles – End of Days

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

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

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Monday Night Raw
Date: February 27, 1995
Location: Macon Coliseum, Macon, Georgia
Attendance: 2,751
Commentators: Jim Cornette, Vince McMahon

Strike up the band because it’s the 100^th episode! This time around we have a “live” appearance by Lawrence Taylor as the road to Wrestlemania continues. Other than that it’s Lex Luger vs. Tatanka in a feud I was hoping would have died by now. I don’t think they have enough history for a retrospective yet but this company astounds me with its ability to praise itself at times. Let’s get to it.

There’s a new opening sequence, which wouldn’t last long but it was nice for a change.

Luger recaps the Tatanka feud, which started at Summerslam and then picked up about six months later. Tatanka recently attacked his mentor Chief Jay Strongbow, who will be in Luger’s corner tonight. Luger has nothing here and you can feel how little he cares.

Tatanka vs. Lex Luger

Ted DiBiase and Chief Jay Strongbow are the seconds. Luger hammers him out to the floor without too much effort and we hit the long form stall button. Back in and Tatanka starts with the chops so Luger shrugs them off as you would expect a good (or mediocre in Luger’s case) hero to do. Some right hands stagger Tatanka but he manages to grab the trunks and send Luger outside in a heap.

Back in and Tatanka chops away some more to take us to a break. We come back with Luger still in trouble and Strongbow slowly clapping him on. Strongbow is a famous name but he just feels WAY out of place here. Tatanka grabs a bearhug and Luger doesn’t even look moderately annoyed. Luger slugs away to break one of the lamest bearhugs I’ve ever seen and the comeback is on. A sleeper, which was apparently taught to him by Strongbow, is easily broken up and Tatanka steals Strongbow’s headdress.

Jay chops him back and Luger hammers away as we take a second break. Back again with Tatanka being clotheslined to the floor and teasing a walk out until Luger drags him to the ring. If he has to deal with this boring feud, so does Tatanka. Luger slams him down and sends Tatanka into the corner over and over. A bunch of stomping sends Tatanka to the floor and this time the walk out works to give Luger the countout win.

Rating: D-. So we wait twenty minutes including two commercials and put up with the Strongbow cameo which meant a grand total of nothing for a walk out finish. In theory this was designed to set up a strap match at Wrestlemania but thankfully the company came to their senses and realized this feud was death for both guys.

Clip of Jerry Lawler being knocked to the floor in a battle royal but landing on one foot. He hopped around the ring to try to get back in….until Bret Hart came down and stomped on his foot to complete the elimination. Cute bit.

Owen Hart vs. Larry Santo

Owen works a hammerlock to start as we hear about his search for a tag partner to challenge the Smoking Gunns. Cornette tries to tell us that Santo is the son of El Santo but Vince doesn’t quite buy it. Owen spinwheel kicks him down as we talk about Taylor vs. Bigelow. A legdrop has Santo in trouble but he actually scores with a few right hands. Those go nowhere of course and it’s the missile dropkick into the Sharpshooter to make Santo quit.

Rating: D. Just a squash here with the announcers ignoring the match to talk about the big story. That’s fine in a match like this that means nothing and at least we heard about Owen’s story to start. Owen moving to the tag division made sense as it gave him a chance to shine without being overshadowed by Bret.

Vince and Cornette talk about the mainstream coverage of Taylor vs. Bigelow. You know Vince loves that stuff.

Taylor joins us to talk about the incident with Bigelow at the Royal Rumble. He thought about fighting back but decided to keep his cool. Also, he’s not cool with the WWF showing the clip over and over on national TV. Preach it brother. Cornette accuses Taylor of being scared but if that were the case, he’d just call the cops and that’s not happening. Bigelow pops in to talk trash and a meeting is set up at the Harley Davidson Cafe in some undisclosed city. This was WAY too long and Taylor came off as incredibly uninteresting and boring. I get the mainstream stuff but my goodness it was annoying to wrestling fans, as it always is.

Doink the Clown vs. Bob Cook

Cook is yet another NWA jobber. Doink kicks him in the back to start and works on the arm as the announcers talk about tomorrow’s press conference. Dink comes in and rolls over Cook and Vince starts talking about adults being overweight. The armbar transitions into a hammerlock before Doink slams him down. The Whoopee Cushion ends Cook without too much trouble.

Rating: D-. The announcers clearly didn’t care about this one and it was just there for the sake of filling in more of the show. This is the kind of match that makes me not want to do a lot of these shows in a row as they’re just not interesting. Raw is two years old at this point and this formula is really wearing thin.

We recap Shawn Michaels’ issues with British Bulldog to set up their match next week.

Kama vs. Ken Raper

Kama takes him down a few times with no issues as Cornette is already more interested in this match than he was in the entire Doink match. A spinning kick to the ribs has Raper in trouble and let’s make fun of Cornette’s weight again. Kama demands better competition and talks more trash before finishing with an STF.

Rating: D. Kama was fine for the time but he would have died as soon as MMA became a bigger thing. The strikes looked good and Kama demanding competition was fine, though it comes at the end of what feels like a very long show. Vince mocking Cornette was the most entertaining thing about the match and that was the same thing we heard in the previous match.

British Bulldog is ready for Shawn next week.

Todd Pettengill tells us how to call in for updates from the press conference, for a nominal fee of course.

Overall Rating: D-. The featured match was long with a lame ending, the interview showed how bad Taylor was in the role and the squashes were bad even by Raw standards. It’s a bad show and more of a reason why this period is almost never talked about. Not a good show in any real way and that’s a sad way to celebrate such a milestone.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/10/02/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-the-intercontinental-title-updated-version/

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

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Monday Night Raw
Date: February 20, 1995
Location: Macon Coliseum, Macon, Georgia
Attendance: 2,751
Commentators: Jim Cornette, Vince McMahon

It’s actually a big show this week as we’re live with a big main event as Intercontinental Champion Jeff Jarrett challenges Diesel for the WWF World Title. In addition to that though, we’ll be finding out the identity of Shawn Michaels’ new bodyguard. Now one of these is actually a big deal and I’ll let you guess which it is. Let’s get to it.

Jarrett is ready to win the title.

Diesel, with his eyes bigger than they need to be, says tonight it’s WWF Unplugged when Jarrett’s lights are turned out. That’s not what unplugged means champ.

Opening sequence.

Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Gary Sabaugh

This is Bigelow’s return after a thirty day suspension. Bigelow has been calling out Lawrence Taylor so Taylor’s attorney issued a cease and desist lawyer. And we were supposed to cheer for Taylor? Sabaugh (longtime NWA jobber the Italian Stallion) takes Bigelow down without much effort and works on an armbar. Back up and Bigelow hits an enziguri as the fans cheer for Taylor. A chinlock eats up some time until a dropkick sets up the top rope headbutt to end Sabaugh.

Rating: D+. Nothing match of course but there’s an interesting story that I’m pretty sure is tied in to this show. Sabaugh would also help get some younger wrestlers booking with the bigger promotions (a common practice for a lot of wrestlers). However, he had a tendency to charge his wrestlers a fee for getting them booked (also a common practice).

In this case, two of them were supposed to come to the show for $150 an appearance, with Sabaugh getting $100 of that. Sabaugh left the two of them stranded in Charlotte on the way to the show but wanted the fee anyway. The wrestlers reported the incident to management and Sabaugh was let go. The two of them stuck around though and you may have heard of them: the Hardy Boyz.

Post match Bigelow calls out Taylor again.

Adam Bomb vs. Rip Rogers

The NWA is strong with this show. Bomb runs him over as Cornette is Rogers’ biggest fan. A dropkick puts Rogers outside and Bomb dives onto him for good measure. Back in and Bomb slugs away as Cornette thinks there’s something to Bomb. Vince says if Cornette was a manager, he could mold Bomb quite well. Cornette: “WHAT DO YOU MEAN IF I WAS A MANAGER??? WHAT DO YOU THINK I’VE DOING FOR THE LAST TWELVE YEARS???” Bomb finishes him with a top rope clothesline.

Rating: D. I’ve always been a fan of Bomb’s as he did what he was supposed to do with a power style like his. The problem is he couldn’t do something as simple as punch Rogers in the ribs without looking awkward. If nothing else there was Cornette running his mouth, which can entertain me anytime.

Bret Hart won something like the People’s Choice Award for Wrestler of the Year from WWF Magazine.

It’s time for the King’s Court with special guest Shawn Michaels to introduce his bodyguard. Before we get there though, Lawler says Bret never would have won if the fans knew what he thought about Japanese fans. This starts the Bret is racist story, which always felt like a good bit of a stretch. Anyway, Shawn talks about needing a bodyguard now that he’s won the Royal Rumble because everyone wants to take him down. Vince being annoyed at all of Shawn’s bragging and wanting him to get on it is funny.

So Shawn needs a bodyguard and it’s…..SID, who is making his return for the first time in nearly three years. Sid does his way too close to the camera interview, yelling about Diesel abandoning Shawn. What Shawn needs is a man with no remorse for anyone and there will be no bad times between the two of them. Together, they will rule the world. This was GREAT as everyone knew who Sid was and he looked like a killer so the whole thing was as good as it could have been. Outstanding stuff here and something that would set the stage for months to come.

Blu Brothers vs. Mark Starr/Leroy Howard

The Brothers clean house to start as this seems to be a short form squash. A double shoulder drops Howard and let’s go split screen with Todd Pettengill to talk about trying to get Lawrence Taylor on the phone. That’s not happening though because Taylor will be on Raw next week. Something like a belly to back suplex drops Starr as Vince compares the Appalachian Mountains to the Smoky Mountains. Starr gets tied in the ropes for a double big boot, followed by a spinebuster and legdrop for the pin.

Rating: D-. The Brothers didn’t do much for me but they probably have a record for the most gimmicks that really aren’t even slightly different than the others. I still like Howard’s look, even if he never went anywhere in his career. Bad match here of course and there’s nothing else that you should be expecting.

Diesel was at an NBA event. He still doesn’t feel like someone who belongs there, mainly due to a complete and utter lack of charisma.

WWF World Title: Jeff Jarrett vs. Diesel

Diesel is defending and the winner gets to kill WCW. Jeff goes after him to start but gets clotheslined out to the floor without too much effort. Back in and we hit some strutting with Cornette freaking out about Jeff not paying enough attention. A good looking beal looks to set up Snake Eyes but Jeff slips out and hammers away in the corner. Roadie’s interference has no effect so Diesel throws Jeff out onto him in a heap. Diesel knuckle locks him down and we take a break.

Back with Jeff dropkicking the champ to the floor and posting him for good measure. A middle rope bulldog (more like a clothesline to the back of the head) gets two on Diesel and a good looking high crossbody gives Jeff another near fall. Diesel is right back with Snake Eyes and a big boot though and the Jackknife finishes clean to retain the title.

Rating: C+. Not bad at all here as Jarrett is perfectly good for the well planned out match. It’s really unfair that he has such a horrible reputation as he was perfectly acceptable and often quite good in the ring. Just don’t put the main event spotlight on him and everything will be fine.

Roadie goes after Diesel and gets beaten down as well. Sid and Shawn come out to watch. They’re still there after a break with Cornette quoting Psycho. Diesel is gone so Cornette talks to Shawn, who says Sid can knock Diesel out of his shoes.

A preview of Tatanka vs. Lex Luger on next week’s 100^th episode wraps us up.

Overall Rating: C. Much better show here with a featured match that people might actually be interested in. I mean, no one was actually interested in Diesel but at least they were trying this time around. Diesel just isn’t working in the mainstream spot and while his in-ring stuff is acceptable, the lack of character or any real edge is killing him. Now why did everyone other than Vince get that?

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/10/02/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-the-intercontinental-title-updated-version/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: February 6, 1995
Location: Manatee Civic Center, Palmetto, Florida
Attendance: 2,500
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Shawn Michaels

We’re fresh off the Royal Rumble and that means it’s time to build towards Shawn vs. Diesel in about two months. Shawn being on commentary for these shows is a good idea as he’s certainly entertaining and one of the few heels who doesn’t wear out his welcome when he’s out there all night. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of last week’s Royal Rumble Challenge between King Kong Bundy and Mabel with Bundy getting some help to win, because MABEL requires assistance. Tonight it’s a six man tag.

Opening sequence.

Lex Luger/Men on a Mission vs. IRS/Tatanka/King Kong Bundy

IRS has the massive Undertaker Urn with him after “repossessing” it at the Rumble but there’s no Ted DiBiase in sight. Bundy and Mabel start things off with the heavy forearms to the chest, because that’s about all they’re capable of doing. Oh and splashes of course but we’ll save that for when it gets serious.

Mabel hits something like an enziguri for two and it’s off to the worthless Mo, who can’t slam Bundy. IRS comes in for some elbows but Mo hits one of the worst dropkicks I’ve seen in recent memory to come back. Thankfully that goes nowhere and it’s off to Tatanka for some chops to the head as we go to a break. Back with Tatanka bailing from Mabel, likely repelled by the magical powers of purple and gold. Mabel drops the big fat elbow and it’s off to Luger for the showdown with his former friend.

Naturally Tatanka hands it off to IRS instead, showing that he’s learning the heel arts. For some reason Luger thinks it’s a good idea to bring Mo back in. Must be the steroids getting to his head. The slow beating continues with a variety of whips and chops, likely because Mo can’t be trusted to take anything more complicated.

Mo gets sent into the corner where a far too sweaty IRS grabs an abdominal stretch. Even a sunset flip looks horrible until Mabel knocks IRS down from the apron for two. Bundy finally misses a charge in the corner and the hot tag brings in Luger to a lukewarm reaction at best. Everything breaks down and Luger slams Bundy but Tatanka gets in a DDT to give Bundy the pin.

Rating: F. This was FIFTEEN MINUTES LONG and Luger took the pin? They really thought this was the best idea for the opening of Monday Night Raw? I knew 1995 was terrible but dang I didn’t realize it was this bad. The ending is the worst part though and I have no idea what the heck they were thinking.

Man Mountain Rock compares playing guitar to winning the WWF World Title.

Lawrence Taylor’s agent reads a statement basically saying he’s sorry and if Bam Bam Bigelow keeps calling him out, Lawrence will sue.

Bam Bam Bigelow Slim Jim ad. These really didn’t last long as it turned out that Randy Savage might have had just a bit more charisma. Slim Jim knew this too and took the campaign to WCW instead. You know, because they’re smart.

Man Mountain Rock vs. Charlie Hunter

Rock plays some guitar before the match. Hunter slides between the legs to start but a hiptoss fails as badly as you would expect it to. Some big elbows have Hunter in trouble and Rock drops a splash for good measure. A nerve hold of all things kills even more time as this is already feeling long. Rock finishes him with a gordbuster. Too short to rate but this didn’t quite, ahem, rock. For you trivia people: Rock’s theme song would later be used by Droz and Prince Albert.

We look at Shawn Michaels coming out to stare Diesel down over the weekend.

Diesel sits down with Vince to talk about facing both Hart Brothers recently. His knees are banged up but he’ll be ready for Shawn. We talk about all of Diesel’s celebrity appearances and….my goodness Diesel just does not look right in this role. He’ll be ready to face Jeff Jarrett in two weeks though.

Shawn will debut his new bodyguard soon.

Mantaur vs. Leroy Howard

Howard has a good look (Think Ice Train if you remember him. If not…yeah I’ve got nothing for you.). Mantaur misses a charge in the corner to start but is still able to catch Howard’s (who has some size) high crossbody. We hit the standard big man offense until Howard hits a clothesline and a dropkick, only to get caught in a World’s Strongest Slam. Jim Cornette screams at Mantaur to stay on him and you can imagine him wanting to kill someone for being stuck managing a character like this. A belly to belly ends Howard.

Rating: D. Howard wasn’t half bad but there’s only so much you can do when you’re stuck against Mantaur. I’m not sure what else anyone was expecting here, but what was anyone expecting when they came up with Mantaur? It’s really one of the worst gimmicks ever and there’s no way around that.

Razor Ramon vs. Frank Lancaster

They trade arm work to start as Shawn catches himself complimenting Razor, which doesn’t sit well with him. Shawn: “Give me a second. I’ll cut him down in just a minute.” Razor shrugs off some chops and beats up Lancaster in the corner without much effort. An abdominal stretch goes nowhere so let’s talk about the current events for some reason. The belly to back superplex sets up the Razor’s Ramon to put Frank away.

Rating: D+. Eh Razor is at least better than Mantaur. An understatement I know but there’s only so much you can say about a match like this. Believe it or not, Razor would be in the Intercontinental Title picture around this point and recently lost the title at the Royal Rumble. Just a squash here.

Henry Godwinn vs. Bill Weaver

Weaver misses an early dropkick and Henry hits him with a wheelbarrow slam. This match’s time filler: wrestlers’ favorite cartoon characters. Henry hits a big clothesline and elbow drop, followed by the Slop Drop for the quick pin. Much better squash here.

Vince tells us that there’s no show next week but Shawn has worse news: he won’t be doing commentary anymore because it makes him too big of a target. They better have a good replacement because he’s one of the only good things about these shows.

Overall Rating: D-. This was the show of big slow squashes and that’s not a good thing. They’re in the slow build to a bad Wrestlemania and that’s a really boring stretch. There’s only so much you can do when you have heel Henry Godwinn and Mantaur as featured acts, plus Luger losing to Bundy when Mo is available to take the fall. Really bad show here, but that’s what you have to expect at this point.

Remember: no February 13 show so the next one is February 20.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/10/02/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-the-intercontinental-title-updated-version/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: October 9, 2017
Location: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Booker T., Corey Graves

It’s Shield night as WWE isn’t exactly being subtle with this one. Last week saw the trio standing in the same room and basically saying they were getting back together, though the question is how long they’ll be able to keep this going. Your trivia for the night: the team debuted in Indianapolis, split in Indianapolis and seems to be reuniting in Indianapolis. I don’t know if WWE did that on purpose but well done if they did. Let’s get to it.

We open with a long recap of Miz/Cesaro/Sheamus beating down the former members of the Shield and the trio looking at each other to end last week’s show. Again: not exactly a subtle idea here.

It’s time for MizTV to start things off and we have the Mizzies II! Last week Miz went from the A-Lister to THE GUY but he can’t take all the credit for the whole thing. That brings us to our first award for perseverance and the winner is Curtis Axel. The fans think he deserves it and Axel dedicates it to Bo Dallas, who is out injured this week.

Next up is Best Supporting Actors in destroying Roman Reigns and the winners in a tie are Cesaro and Sheamus. The Bar (still a stupid name) comes out to thank Reigns in their acceptance speech but Cesaro wants to remember Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose for breaking his teeth. Miz grants himself the award for Big Dog and again the fans think he deserves it.

This brings out Reigns but Miz knows he won’t come in down 4-1. Miz doesn’t want to hear about these lame rumors but Roman doesn’t like them being called rumors. This brings out Ambrose and Rollins with Cole saying Miz and the Bar never expected this to happen. Oh shut up Cole. The brawl is on with Miz bailing and the beatdown commences. Miz gets cornered and a TripleBomb plants him, allowing Shield to bring back the signature pose.

This was WWE’s beat you over the head booking at its finest as they made no secret of Shield reuniting. It’s cool that they’re back together and it gives WWE something to hype up but how much better would it have been if this was a surprise? Of course WWE wanted to hype it up, which is fine, but they took all the shock value they could out of it, which really made it a lot less fun.

Jason Jordan vs. Karl Anderson

Jordan takes him to the mat with almost no effort but gets caught in a headlock to slow things down. The first suplex looks to set up a shoulder in the corner but Luke Gallows offers a distraction and Anderson dropkicks the knee out. Back from a break with Anderson working on the arm and getting two off a spinebuster. We’re right back to the armbar until Jordan fights up with some clotheslines and a drive into the corner. The first belly to belly connects but Jordan has to knock Gallows off the apron. Anderson misses a charge in the corner and it’s the wheelbarrow neckbreaker to put Anderson away at 8:16.

Rating: C-. Anderson and Gallows are now on the list of people whose mere appearance sucks the life out of me. They’re not funny, they’re not interesting, their matches are average at best and now we’re stuck with them putting over Jordan, who is only moderately acceptable in this role in the first place.

Miz is getting iced down when Kurt Angle comes in. The TLC match is officially made for the pay per view with Miz/the Bar vs. Shield.

Here’s Elias to insult Titus Worldwide, which is like a car in the Indy 500: going around in circles but not going anywhere. He thinks the fans don’t want to hear a song tonight but he loves his own voice too much to not do one. Actually hang on as here’s Titus O’Neil plucking a banjo. Titus sings a little number about Apollo Crews being Elias up next.

Apollo Crews vs. Elias

Joined in progress with Elias stomping away and working on the arm. Elias even busts out Old School (which I don’t remember anyone but Undertaker ever using outside of a match with Undertaker) but Crews fights back for a few seconds. That’s about it from him though as he gets sent throat first into the ropes, setting up Drift Away for the pin at 3:14 shown.

Rating: D. This is another match that we’ve seen a few times now and it’s not getting any better. If there’s a reason for this feud (if you can call it that) to continue I’m not seeing it, as it’s something where there’s no drama and no real story but it keeps going anyway. Titus Worldwide is a nice little idea but with no star and barely ever winning anything, it’s not exactly lighting the world on fire.

Here’s Enzo Amore to talk about how awesome he is and how he has no challengers thanks to the rest of the division attacking him a few weeks back. He wants Angle out here right now for some explaining about why he’s defending the title against Kalisto at TLC. Enzo pulls out a signed contract saying that if any member of the division attacked him, they would never get a title shot.

The deal is Kalisto was signed after that contract was signed so the title match is official. Enzo doesn’t like it so Angle switches the title match to tonight. That’s fine, as long as it’s in the main event. Angle isn’t done yet though and makes it a lumberjack match with the rest of the division around the ring.

We recap the opening sequence.

Matt Hardy vs. Braun Strowman

Matt slugs away and gets in a dropkick but the Side Effect is easily countered with a throw. Back from an early break with Matt hitting a Twist of Fate for one. Another attempt is countered into a chokeslam and it’s the running powerslam to end Matt at 6:27. Not enough shown to rate but this was basically a squash.

Strowman carries Hardy up the ramp but gets cut off by the Shield (now in matching t-shirts). Reigns spears him down and the triple beatdown is on. The TripleBomb puts Strowman through the announcers’ table. Now THAT is the kind of return segment they needed.

Post break Shield says they’re back and aren’t scared of anyone. You can believe that.

Here’s Mickie James with something to say. Mickie has felt something has been wrong since she came back. Maybe it’s her southern accent or her country music or her age. Alexa Bliss has been the worst of them all for this because she’s been doing it all behind her back. That’s the kind of champion Bliss is and then she hid behind her bodyguard. Mickie has more energy in her than Bliss has cheap hair extension and pink hair dye and the only number that matters to her is seven.

This brings out Bliss to say she’s not here to cause trouble. Bliss has put together a career retrospective on James’ career and it’s presented as an old newsreel under the title Superstars of Yesteryear in black and white. Mickie calls Bliss to the ring but the champ pulls back at the last second, calling it a move as old as Mickie is. Mickie chases her down and gets in a few shots.

Bayley and Sasha Banks are talking with Kurt Angle about getting the shot at Asuka. Alicia Fox, Emma and Dana Brooke all come in and want the shot instead.

Jack Gallagher/Brian Kendrick vs. Cedric Alexander/Mustafa Ali

Cedric attacked Kendrick’s ankle last week to help set this up. Ali and Gallagher get in an argument on the floor, leaving Brian to send Cedric into the corner to take over. Jack comes in for a chinlock before hammering away in the corner. Cedric gets away and makes the hot tag off to Ali so things can speed up. The rolling neckbreaker gets two on Kendrick with Jack making a save. The distraction lets Kendrick hit Sliced Bread #2 for the pin on Ali at 3:46.

Rating: D+. As usual, aside from Enzo, the cruiserweights are treated like filler on here and that doesn’t do 205 Live any favors. Why would I want to watch a show dedicated to Raw’s filler talent? That’s really the best thing they can do here? I know the cruserweights were announced in the Draft over a year ago but their limited value on Raw was used up a long time ago.

We recap Shield’s actions tonight. There’s no hiding the fact that this show isn’t exactly covered in interesting talent.

Miz comes in to see Angle to call Shield out on their saying they can face any four or five people. Therefore, he’s going to find another partner and of course it’s Strowman.

Here’s Finn Balor to deal with the potential that Sister Abigail is alive. Balor thinks these threats make Bray feel like he’s scared. If that’s what Bray is all about, bring on the whole family. We cut to Bray’s empty rocking chair but Bray sits down. Bray says Finn may not be afraid of him but he’ll be afraid of her. They turned her into a monster but she chose Bray with her final breath. Now, the season of the witch is upon Balor.

A shawl appears over Bray’s face and a distorted voice says men are all the same. They just want to control everything but Bray is special. She’s seen what Bray has done to Finn so it’s time to punish him and the Demon. Abigail knows about demons and she’ll turn it into a dandelion. Her touch could have saved Finn but now her kiss will burn him to the ground. Abigail laughs and Bray returns. This wasn’t terrible, but none of it matters if Bray loses to Balor at TLC.

Bayley vs. Sasha Banks vs. Alicia Fox vs. Dana Brooke vs. Emma

Elimination rules and the winner gets Asuka at TLC. Dana, now with pink hair, takes Sasha to the floor and it’s Alicia vs. Emma inside. Alicia pulls her away from the ropes but Dana comes back in to beat on Fox. That’s it for the team up with Fox as Dana hits her cartwheel elbows to Fox and Emma in the corner, only to have Bayley break it up. The cartwheel splash gets two on Bayley but the Bayley to Belly gets rid of Brooke. The graphic before the match announced it as elimination rules but Cole said it was one fall to a finish, meaning he was surprised by the match continuing.

Fox hits an ax kick to get rid of Bayley because she’s fallen below the ground since Wrestlemania. Back with Fox and Emma yelling at each other until Sasha runs Fox over. Fox gets thrown into Emma and it’s the Bank Statement to make her tap, only to have Emma roll Sasha up for the win at 9:43.

Rating: D+. This was full of botches and that’s not really surprising. Most of the match is designed to be spot after spot and there’s almost no way to have any kind of coherence when there’s nothing in between. You can’t get much of a match out of that, especially with four falls and a commercial in less than ten minutes.

Balor felt pure evil when Abigail spoke to him tonight and thinks Bray has unleashed something horrible. He knows what he has to do now.

Opening sequence for the fourth time tonight.

Strowman vs. Reigns in a cage next week.

Kalisto was inspired by people like Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero (who would have turned 50 today) but now, Enzo Amore is the Cruiserweight Champion. He hopes he can make the two of them proud.

The lumberjacks come to the ring.

Cruiserweight Title: Enzo Amore vs. Kalisto

Kalisto is challenging and it’s a lumberjack match. Enzo shoulders him down to start and does a dance, only to have to stare at the lumberjacks. Back up and Kalisto kicks him in the shoulder before a front facelock takes us to a break. We come back with Enzo in control and slowly stomping away until Kalisto kicks him in the head.

A springboard crossbody gets two and Enzo is knocked outside where the lumberjacks get him back inside. Enzo rolls him into the corner to take over and Kalisto is sent outside this time. The villains get in a few stomps until Ali and Alexander make the save. We hit the chinlock for a bit until Kalisto gets in a rollup for two of his own.

The lumberjacks get in a brawl until Kalisto superplexes Enzo onto the pile. Naturally this means it’s time to talk about Shield again. Back in and the Salida Del Sol is countered into the Jordunzo but Ali pulls Enzo outside because it’s No DQ. Enzo drops Ali with a clothesline and crotches Kalisto on the top. Not that it matters as Kalisto reverses into a super Salida Del Sol for the pin and the title at 14:29.

Rating: C-. Well that was surprising. I can’t imagine this lasting long term but it’s certainly a nice surprise while it lasts. Kalisto winning opens the door for some more title challengers in the short term, though it’s almost a guarantee that Enzo will not only get a rematch but likely get the title back at the pay per view. Still though, good win for the moment.

Overall Rating: C+. This show was all about a handful of ideas but those ideas were handled well enough. The ending helped as well as there was nothing wrong with giving the fans something they wanted to see to close the show. At least they got some of the card set up for TLC and there are some ways to go as we go into next week.

Results

Jason Jordan b. Karl Anderson – Wheelbarrow neckbreaker

Elias b. Apollo Crews – Drift Away

Braun Strowman b. Matt Hardy – Running powerslam

Brian Kendrick/Jack Gallagher b. Cedric Alexander/Mustafa Ali – Sliced Bread #2 to Ali

Emma b. Alicia Fox, Sasha Banks, Bayley and Dana Brooke – Rollup to Banks

Kalisto b. Enzo Amore – Super Salida Del Sol

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/10/02/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-the-intercontinental-title-updated-version/

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

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

Hell in a Cell 2017
Date: October 8, 2017
Location: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves

It’s time for the Shane McMahon Does Something Stupid Show. The main event tonight is Shane McMahon vs. Kevin Owens inside the show’s namesake structure as Shane fights to defend his family’s honor. Other than that we have the Usos challenging the New Day for the Tag Team Titles inside the Cell too. Let’s get to it.

On the Kickoff Show, Tye Dillinger mentions to Daniel Bryan that he beat Baron Corbin on Smackdown but Corbin is getting a US Title shot tonight. Therefore, Tye should be added to the match. Bryan agrees and we get a YES/TEN exchange with both guys doing the other’s thing.

Kickoff Show: Hype Bros vs. Shelton Benjamin/Chad Gable

Shelton works on Mojo’s arm to start before it’s off to Gable, who eats a crossbody. Ryder and Benjamin come in with Shelton scoring with a spinebuster and the Bros heading to the floor as we take a break. Back with Ryder still in trouble as Benjamin and Gable take turns suplexing him. Shelton’s superplex is broken up and it’s a missile dropkick to Benjamin. The hot tag brings in Mojo for shoulders and a tilt-a-whirl slam to Gable. A clothesline takes Mojo down and Gable has to try a moonsault, only to land on his feet when Mojo moves.

Instead he belly to bellys Rawley and hits the second attempt at a moonsault for two. Ryder gets knocked off the apron as Mojo starts….uh….hyping up. The Hype Ryder is broken up (which Ryder seems to blame on Mojo) and Paydirt gives Shelton two on Ryder with Mojo making the save. The powerbomb/top rope clothesline combination puts Ryder away at 10:22.

Rating: C. Just a tag match here that you could have seen on any given Smackdown. That’s the kind of Kickoff match you want though as the fans were into the Hype Bros, even if it seems that they’re splitting. You know, because this division is so deep that they can split teams up right now.

The opening video looks at the power and devastation of the Cell itself before looking at most of the matches tonight. Standard but it still works.

Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Usos

The Usos are challenging inside the Cell. Before the Usos come out, New Day talks about how it’s going to be a prison break tonight when they break the Usos apart. It’s Kofi as the odd man out and they don’t even bother waiting around before finding the weapons. Two kendo sticks (rainbow colored for Xavier), a chair and a chain are brought in with New Day getting the better of it and Big E. dropping Woods (and the chain) onto Jimmy’s face for an early two.

Big E. is sent into the Cell though and Jey dives over the top to take Woods down. Back up though and Big E. spears Jey into the Cell for a heck of a crash. Woods breaks Francesca II over Jey’s back but Big E. pulls out Francesca III for the same result. And now, a cowbell is brought in with Woods hitting Jey in the ribs. If that’s not enough music for your taste, it’s time for a gong (Mortal Kombat reference) but Jimmy throws a chair at Woods’ head. Big E. gets superkicked down and it’s time for the kendo stick beating.

The running Umaga Attack drives Woods up against the Cell but Big E. is back up with a Rock Bottom off the apron into a Backstabber from Woods on the floor. Woods grabs about six kendo sticks and pins Jey up in the corner, sliding the sticks through the Cell like prison bars. It doesn’t last long but it’s a heck of a creative spot. Jimmy throws Big E. onto his shoulders for a spear through the ropes from Jey, driving Big E. into the Cell again.

Back in and the double Superfly Splashes get two and the Usos are frustrated. They bust out some handcuffs and cuff Woods around the post for some stick shots to the ribs ala Orton vs. Cena at Breaking Point back in 2009. They unload on Woods with about twenty shots in a row before letting him off the corner. That’s rather dumb no?

Big E. is back up though and cleans house, including driving Jimmy into the Cell so hard that the whole thing moves. He does it again, driving Jimmy into Jey this time around. The Big Ending gets two on Jey but Jimmy is back in with a pair of superkicks. A double superkick sets up the double Superfly Splash but Woods somehow dives in for the save. The still handcuffed Woods gets all fired up and shrugs off the kendo stick shots but they finally beat him down. With a chair put over Woods, the double Superfly Splash at 21:56.

Rating: A. The referee saying “three” when Woods was being destroyed on the post and the match ending three minutes later aside, this was a GREAT match for two main reasons. First of all, the stuff they did felt fresh. There were a ton of fun spots in here that you haven’t seen before and that’s much better than the repetitive stuff that happens so often in these matches.

Second, and more important, it felt like they wanted to hurt each other. So often the Cell matches are just big matches that don’t have anything resembling violence or carnage, which makes for some bad performances. This was a heck of a brawl and one of the better Cell matches ever. If they just have to keep feuding though, give us a few weeks/months off. Let Breezango get another shot or Benjamin/Gable or someone. Just give us a breather.

AJ Styles isn’t worried about the match being made a triple threat (with Tye Dillinger being added) and quotes a little Tom Petty in a nice touch.

Quick recap of Rusev vs. Randy Orton, which is their third match after the first two didn’t combine to last thirty seconds. Orton attacked Rusev when he was being given the key to his hometown to set up a third match.

Rusev vs. Randy Orton

An early RKO attempt sends Rusev bailing to the floor but he comes back in and fires off shoulders in the corner. Orton stomps away though and tries the hanging DDT but they head outside again. Rusev drives him into the barricade and grabs a chinlock back inside. A spinwheel kick gives Rusev two but he seems to be favoring his back.

Some big elbows are good for two but a missed charge sends Rusev face first into the post (CHECK HIS TEETH!). An RKO attempt doesn’t work so Orton settles for the snap powerslam for two instead. A fall away slam gives Rusev two more but the Accolade attempt sends Orton bailing to the floor. Back in and the hanging DDT connects but Rusev kicks him down again. The Accolade doesn’t work again though and it’s an RKO to put Rusev away at 11:43.

Rating: C+. Is there a point of having Rusev around? It’s clear that WWE isn’t going to give him anything resembling a push anytime soon (or for years to come probably) and I have no idea why they keep putting him in these spots. Oh but at the same time, we get Jinder Mahal being unfunny and uninteresting because of an India tour in December. Another eye roll inducing ending as Orton is the same with a win or a loss while Rusev takes a big hit.

US Title: Tye Dillinger vs. Baron Corbin vs. AJ Styles

Styles is defending and Dillinger was added to the match earlier tonight. Dillinger had tried to answer the US Open Challenge but Baron attacked him, setting up a mini feud between the two. Corbin was scheduled to be the challenger but Tye beat him on Smackdown, earning a spot in this match too. AJ and Tye stare Corbin out to the floor and look to go at each other, only to stomp Corbin down when he tries to sneak back in.

They send Corbin outside again and AJ rolls Tye up for two before scoring with with the drop down dropkick. Corbin punches Tye to the floor and avoids AJ’s dropkick to take over for the first time. A hard whip sends AJ ribs first into the post so Corbin chokes Dillinger in the corner. They head outside with Corbin whipping Tye into the barricade and then slugging him down.

Back in and AJ wins a slugout with Corbin (bit of a surprise) before scoring with the Phenomenal Blitz. Tye comes back in with a hot shot and backdrop to AJ, followed by that one knee Codebreaker for two. Back up and AJ slaps on the Calf Crusher but Corbin pulls Tye to the ropes for the break.

AJ dives over the top with a slingshot forearm but his second springboard is countered into a chokebreaker for a rather near fall. Tye comes back in and kicks both guys in the face until AJ Peles him onto Corbin for a heck of a false finish. The springboard 450 connects with Corbin but Tye makes the save. That just earns Tye a Phenomenal Forearm, only to have Corbin throw AJ out and steal the pin and the title at 19:30.

Rating: B-. Good match here though it went it a little longer than is needed to. Hopefully this sets up AJ in the World Title picture again (if Mahal retains tonight) as it’s the logical way to get us to that point. Tye being added was a good idea as it kept this from feeling like a dull title defense. It also opens the door for some challengers to the title, including one Sami Zayn somewhere in there.

We recap Charlotte vs. Natalya, which thankfully isn’t another Bret vs. Ric feud. Natalya is champion and Charlotte won a multi-woman match to get the shot.

Women’s Title: Natalya vs. Charlotte

Natalya is defending and this match gives her the record for most pay per view matches in women’s history. They trade early leg hold attempts but Natalya settles for some kicks to the leg to really take over. Charlotte uses the good leg to kick her away but still gets caught in a leglock.

That’s broken without too much effort and Charlotte uses the good leg for a big boot to the jaw. A powerbomb doesn’t work as the leg is too banged up so Charlotte tries a backslide for two instead. She’s still able to strut on one leg but tries a moonsault for some reason, allowing Natalya to hit her in the knee a few times. Natalya gets two off a sitout powerbomb but eats another big boot.

This time it’s with the bad knee though and Charlotte goes down, even needing to head outside. The leg is knocked into the steps and Charlotte is in big trouble. Back in and Natalya loads up the Sharpshooter, only to have Charlotte flip her into the buckles for the break. Natalya heads outside again so Charlotte moonsaults down onto her, banging up the knee again. Not that it matters as Natalya grabs a chair to hit Charlotte’s knee for the DQ at 12:18.

Rating: C. Good from a technical standpoint but I’m rather sick of seeing these two fight. Charlotte has beaten Natalya time after time and now we’re probably looking at a submission match next month where Charlotte finally wins the title. The matches are good but sweet goodness the promos to set them up are nightmares and we’re going to be sitting through them for weeks.

It’s Fashion Files time! Their bulletin board includes Cesaro as Tooth Fairy 3 and Raven as That’s So Raven. They’ve solved the 2B case and tease a flashback but wind up in the same place. Ascension, in bad disguises, come in with a delivery. It’s a tube, which Breeze thinks means 2B.

Inside the case is an Ascension poster with the message “we want 2B your friends”. Breeze says there’s no way it’s Ascension because they’re idiots. Ascension takes off the disguises and leave looking very sad. Breeze: “Those disguises were incredible!” There’s another knock at the door but it’s just a black briefcase. They open it up and the contents are glowing ala Pulp Fiction. It’s a new case, meaning Pulp Fashion begins on Tuesday.

We recap Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jinder Mahal for the Smackdown World Title. Basically Mahal is overconfident and thinks Nakamura is funny looking so he made some semi-racist jokes at Nakamura’s expense. Nakamura also has to deal with the Singh Brothers to make things even worse.

Smackdown World Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jinder Mahal

Mahal is defending and grabs a wristlock to start. Nakamura takes him down without too much effort but can’t get a cross armbreaker. Back up and Nakamura says COME ON before the threat of the Kinshasa sends Mahal bailing to the floor. The champ sends him back first into the post and we hit a camel clutch back inside. A hard whip into the corner has Nakamura in more trouble and it’s off to a chinlock.

Nakamura fights up with a spinning kick to the head for a breather, followed by kicks to the chest. The running knee in the corner gets two and Nakamura adds a knee drop from the apron, only to bang up his own knee again. Back in and the Khallas is broken up, followed by a middle rope knee to Mahal’s chest.

Cue the Singh Brothers for a distraction but Nakamura grabs a rollup for two anyway. The referee finally ejects the Brothers and there’s Kinshasa to Mahal but he grabs the rope at two. Another Kinshasa hits knee though and it’s the Khallas to keep the title on Mahal (again) at 12:05.

Rating: C-. And yes, it continues. Ignoring how they had back to back matches focused on working the knee, this was your standard dull Mahal match with no heat and the fans rolling their eyes when he retains the title again. They’re more than willing to have Smackdown continue to sink for the sake of those India shows in December and if we don’t like it, get over it because nothing is changing. Boring match, but that’s all you can expect from Mahal.

Kevin Owens doesn’t want to hear about what he did to the McMahon Family because Shane has caused Owens’ family harm for the sake of feeding his bottomless ego. Tonight, Shane has to pay.

Bobby Roode vs. Dolph Ziggler

It’s a battle over entrances. Ziggler cuts off his own entrance and comes out to silence and no video. A headlock slows Roode down to start until Roode snaps him throat first across the top to really take over. Some chops in the corner have Ziggler even further in control and we hit a chinlock to keep Roode down.

It’s off to a sleeper for a good while as this is one of the worst ways they could go about having Roode’s pay per view debut. Roode fights up and sends Ziggler shoulder first into the post for his first major offense. A swinging Rock Bottom gives Roode two but Ziggler’s jumping DDT is good for the same.

Just in case you thought this match could get interesting, Ziggler grabs the sleeper AGAIN. A bulldog (called a Fameasser) gets two on Roode but the superkick is countered into a spinebuster. The Glorious DDT is countered into a rollup to give Ziggler two and they trade rollups for a bunch of near falls until Roode grabs the tights (which Ziggler was doing every time) for the pin at 11:35.

Rating: F. Nope. Not the match quality but this was the definition of a failure. Roode looked like he got lucky to steal a cheating win and Ziggler dominated 90% of the match while killing the crowd in the process. This was as bad as it could have been and every single problem they had with Nakamura’s debut against Ziggler. Terrible match and it’s entirely on the layout and booking.

Ziggler immediately hits the Zig Zag on Roode to set up a rematch.

Long recap of Shane McMahon vs. Kevin Owens. Kevin claimed a conspiracy against him for months and attacked Vince after securing a match with Shane inside the Cell. Shane is fighting for his family and is basically holding up a big sign saying “I’m going to do something stupid.”

Kevin Owens vs. Shane McMahon

Inside the Cell and with falls count anywhere for reasons of Shane needs to do something outside. Owens steps into the Cell so the bell rings and Shane baseball slides him through the door. That means the bad punches make an early appearance and Shane follows up with a clothesline off the barricade.

Owens heads into the cage for safety so Shane kicks the door into his face. Back in and Shane gets knocked off the apron and into the Cell wall, allowing Owens to rub his face against the cage, right in front of Shane’s kids. Owens grabs the steps but gets kicked in the chest. That’s it for Shane’s offense at the moment though as Owens drops a backsplash for two. There’s the Cannonball for two as the crowd is just waiting for Shane to start doing something so they can care.

The Swanton Bomb hits Shane’s knees though and his legs are too banged up to do anything. Why is that something no one else can understand? Back up and Shane peppers him with some more punches, only to miss the shooting star press. Owens’ frog splash gets two but the Pop Up Powerbomb is countered into a pretty messy looking triangle choke.

A powerbomb onto the steps gets Owens out of trouble and it’s table time. The table is leaned up against the table but Owens’ Cannonball off the apron misses Shane and sends him through the table for a crash. Shane hits him with a piece of the broken table and tosses a trashcan into the ring. Coast to Coast connects on Owens but his foot is on the rope, which completely defeats the point of falls count anywhere.

Shane cuts the door open with bolt cutters, allowing Owens to DDT Shane on the ramp with a thud. Owens puts him on the announcers’ table and climbs onto the barricade….before looking up at the Cell. He goes up, looks down at Shane….and can’t bring himself to do it. Instead Shane gets up and climbs to the top as well and it’s time for a slugout on the roof. Shane grabs a Russian legsweep and bangs his own head before slamming Owens on the steel.

There’s a suplex on the Cell to keep teasing the big spot. Owens takes him down for a change and drops a backsplash. The powerbomb is reversed into a backdrop but Owens gets the Pop Up Powerbomb, which still doesn’t break the Cell. Owens teases throwing him off the top but Shane punches his way out of dying.

Thankfully Owens starts climbing down and Shane follows him for some kicks to the back, followed by a ram to the cage to send Owens through the table. EMT’s come down to check on Owens but Shane picks him up and puts him on the second announcers’ table. Shane goes up but dives through the table as Sami Zayn popped up to pull Owens off the table. Sami throws the EMT’s away and puts Owens on top for the pin at 38:18.

Rating: C. I’m going with right in the middle as I got the drama here but I HATED the stunt show stuff. I’m scared of heights in the first place and I can’t stand this kind of stuff in place of having an actual match. Sami turning at the end is a good thing as he doesn’t have anything going for him at the moment and being Owens’ right hand man is the best thing he could do. We knew it was going to be the big stunt at the end and I’m glad Owens won, but sweet goodness it took too long to get there. I get the drama and all that but I really didn’t care for this for the most part, as is typically the case in the WAY too long Shane matches.

Overall Rating: B-. This is a hard one to grade as I loved the opener, couldn’t stand the Ziggler match and wanted to turn off the show during the main event for reasons that have little to do with the actual match. The show was better than I was expecting but the biggest problem was it showed how little star power Smackdown has. They need to boost some people and hopefully the main event starts us down that road. AJ vs. Mahal is the likely title program though Owens/Sami will be the top heel act going forward. This show leaves me cautiously optimistic, but I’ve been in that place before.

Results

Usos b. New Day – Double Superfly Splash to Woods

Randy Orton b. Rusev – RKO

Baron Corbin b. AJ Styles and Tye Dillinger – Phenomenal Forearm to Dillinger

Charlotte b. Natalya via DQ when Natalya used a chair

Jinder Mahal b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Khallas

Bobby Roode b. Dolph Ziggler – Rollup with a handful of tights

Kevin Owens b. Shane McMahon – Pin after Shane fell through a table

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/10/02/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-the-intercontinental-title-updated-version/

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

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

It’s currently Saturday night and we’re about twenty four hours away from the start of “Hell in a Cell 2017”. I’ve known that I need to start getting this together but the more I think about doing it the less interested I am in the show. All week long and especially while I watched the last two episodes of “Smackdown Live”, my interest level in the show has gone downhill faster and faster. It’s entirely and completely a one match show and that one match hasn’t grabbed my attention. I’m not thrilled with this show but let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Shelton Benjamin/Chad Gable vs. Hype Bros

This is a match that was teased a few weeks ago on the YouTube channel and for once I’m fine with that being all the build the match receives. It’s not like this is a match that means anything but it’s a good choice for an opener. All four guys will get a solid reaction and it should be a perfectly acceptable ten minute match.

I’ll take Benjamin and Gable to win here as the Bros have been going through some issues as of late. You know, because the “Smackdown Live” tag team division is so deep that it can break up teams at the moment. Benjamin and Gable might not seem like an option with the longest lifespan but WWE might as well see what they have with them. Benjamin and Gable win without much trouble.

Women’s Title: Natalya(c) vs. Charlotte

How many times have we seen this match now? Be it down in NXT or up here on the main roster, it feels like a match that we’ve covered so many times now. At last they haven’t dragged Ric Flair and Bret Hart into it again, but that’s not exactly the highest level of praise. Natalya is doing fine but that doesn’t make her interesting as champion.

I’ll take Charlotte to win here as they need to get the title on either her or Becky Lynch as soon as possible. They’re the only two women on the show with the combination of charisma and in-ring abilities to make it work (though Naomi has come an incredibly long way towards that combination this year). It’s the right call and about as close to being overdue as you can get.

Randy Orton vs. Rusev

What does it mean when the big selling point of a match is they might go longer than five minutes this time around? These two have trades wins in a pair of matches that didn’t combine to go thirty seconds. Rusev needs the win a lot more than Orton but WWE has a really bad track record of just giving Orton wins that he doesn’t need, especially at the expense of someone who needs the support.

I’ll give WWE some hope and take Rusev for the win here, as he’s owed this one after being screwed over twice this year. Allegedly he was in line for the Jinder Mahal push (no word on if he would have won the title) and then he had to lose the match at “Summerslam 2017” for the sake of giving Orton another win to make up for the Mahal feud. Rusev needs this win and there’s no need for Orton to get another victory that won’t mean anything in the long run. Now if only WWE can realize how much sense that makes.

Bobby Roode vs. Dolph Ziggler

This is another one that should be a layup and this time around it feels like WWE knows what it’s doing. Ziggler has been mocking entrances for weeks now in a story that still isn’t clicking, though it’s been entertaining at times. Roode of course is known for his entrance and the match makes perfect sense as a result.

I’ll take Roode to win, though there’s something more important than the end result. Flash back with me to “Backlash 2017” where Ziggler faced Shinsuke Nakamura in Nakamura’s in-ring debut. Ziggler went even with him and Nakamura really didn’t blow anything away. While Roode is nowhere near as dominant as Nakamura, I’m worried about this being more of a showcase for Ziggler than Roode, who needs the push to get somewhere. Ziggler is little more than a gatekeeper to the big time and there’s no need to give him a majority of the offense. Both guys get stuff in but Roode wins in what should be dominant fashion.

Tag Team Titles: New Day(c) vs. Usos

Now this is the most interesting match on the card. These teams have been feuding for months now and barring a rather stupid move, this should be the final match of the whole thing. There’s no logical reason to have them go on no matter who wins, save for the eternally annoying contractually obligated rematch clause. Just let them end it in a huge match for a change and be done with it.

I’m going with New Day to retain here, though I don’t have a ton of confidence in the pick. WWE seems obsessed with trading the titles ass often as they can for the sake of building up the title reigns for the sake of building up the title reigns and giving the Usos their fifth reign is probably tempting. New Day doesn’t have a ton of options for opponents though, which gives me some caution. I’ll still say they keep the belts, though I’m probably going to be wrong.

Smackdown World Title: Jinder Mahal(c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Here’s the thing: Mahal has shocked the heck out of me as champion. He’s looking more and more like a main eventer every single week and as average as he seems most of the time, he’s so much better now than he was when he won the title and that’s quite the accomplishment. The problem though is very simple: no one cares. Like at all. Mahal is one of the least interesting characters you’ll ever see and people aren’t buying him as a top star.

Nakamura wins the title here, partially due to pure necessity. Mahal’s title reign has crippled the live crowds at “Smackdown Live” and there’s just nothing interesting about what he’s doing. They need to find someone at least more interesting (Nakamura might not be more interesting but he’s far less dull) in a hurry as the show can’t take Mahal on top for much longer.

US Title: AJ Styles(c) vs. Baron Corbin

First off, I’m not entirely convinced that Tye Dillinger won’t be added to this at the last minute to make it a three way dance. Assuming that doesn’t happen though, I don’t see much doubt in this one. Styles has been trying to do the whole US Open Challenge deal but he’s had all of two matches in the thing, which kind of defeats the purpose. Hopefully he can get back on track with it later.

As you might be able to tell, I’m taking Styles to retain here, even though Corbin needs the win more. The only way I could see Styles losing is to set him up as the next challenger for Mahal, though I have a feeling they would rather let Styles get back to the main event scene later. Styles is the better option here and even though Corbin needs to win something, Styles is a great US Champion and should hold the title a bit longer.

Kevin Owens vs. Shane McMahon

And now, the reason I care so little about this show. Make no mistake about it (and I don’t know how you could): this is the ONLY match WWE cares about on this show. The whole thing is built around “what is Shane going to do to Owens”, meaning the match is building to one or two spots. If Owens has to slow WAY down to let McMahon hang with him, so be it because this is all about McMahon doing something stupid. I need more than that to interest me in a show, but WWE doesn’t quite seem to agree.

In the pick that really, really needs to be right, I’m going with Owens to win. There’s just no need to have McMahon ever win a match again, despite him being one of the top faces on the show. McMahon can lose here and then come back in another few weeks without continuing the feud. Owens on the other hand can move up, challenge Nakamura for the title, defeat Sami Zayn at “Royal Rumble 2017” (assuming Zayn doesn’t cost McMahon the match, which has been hinted at for a few weeks now) and then face HHH at “Wrestlemania XXXIV” when HHH has to kill his own creation to defend the company and his family.

Overall Thoughts

On paper, only the two Cell matches need to be on pay per view. Other than that, everything on here feels like it could be on almost any given episode of “Smackdown Live”. Actually a lot of them have been on free TV in recent months and would Roode vs. Ziggler airing on TV be that much of a stretch? This show just doesn’t feel special and I don’t think there’s any real way around that problem. The wrestling might be just fine, though I don’t think it’s going to be anything I need to see.

Oh and as for Breezango: I think they find out who is behind it all (my guess is still the Authors of Pain) and they wrap it up in a bonus match on the pay per view.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/10/02/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-the-intercontinental-title-updated-version/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: May 8, 2003
Location: Metro Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Commentators: Tazz, Michael Cole

With the pay per view right around the corner, it might be nice if they set up a few more matches. There’s only a few things set up already and unfortunately we’re likely in for more of the Mr. America story dominating the show. Last week’s segment was fine, but I have a feeling it’s going to overstay its welcome in a hurry. Let’s get to it.

We open with a long recap of the Mr. America story, which somehow seems to focus on Stephanie. Vince has vowed to take the mask off of America and prove it’s really Hogan.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Vince to get things going. He’s had a change of heart so tonight Hogan is going to be here tonight….via satellite from Tampa, Florida. That means Mr. America won’t be here because they’re clearly the same person. Even Canadians could figure something like this out. The YOU SCREWED Bret chants start up with Cole saying that means Bret Hart. Thanks Mikey. Vince: “You’re right I did and I’ll screw every one of you if you just give me the chance!”

This brings out Stephanie with Vince demanding to know why she signed Mr. America. She did it for the fans because she had heard about how big a star he was and all his experience. Vince wants to know why she did this, which Stephanie says was to counter Bischoff’s attempts to sign Mr. America, which is why he got the iron clad deal. The only way to break the contract is to prove that Mr. America is Hogan. That’s cool with Vince and he has Stephanie leave so he can interview Hogan from Tampa.

We go live via satellite to Hogan’s office, featuring a prominently displayed copy of his new book on the shelf, what appears to be a Divas swimsuit magazine on the table and…..a really big Home Depot catalog/book? Hogan says he wants to be back in front of the crowd because it’s killing him to not be out there.

He’d love to team up with Mr. America one day, even if there are some physical similarities between the two. Of course Hogan’s Pythons are bigger and he’s much better looking. Vince laughs it off and says we should see Mr. America right here in Nova Scotia. Hogan looks upset but quotes George Washington by saying he cannot tell a lie. There’s a chance that Mr. America will show up tonight, which is an idea that Vince loves.

I have SO many questions. Who in the world was telling Stephanie all this stuff about Mr. America without mentioning THAT IT WAS HULK HOGAN??? Who would have seen Mr. America wrestle in person and called Stephanie to tell her about him? Are we supposed to buy that Hogan was just off working independent promotions throughout his career under a mask?

Stephanie said she was told he had a lot of experience, which would suggest he’s been doing this for awhile. So some people who she apparently trusts called her and told her to sign this guy who Eric Bischoff was interested in as well but apparently either didn’t realize that it was Hogan or didn’t know/care about Vince banning Hogan from wrestling? Was Bischoff just going to sign Mr. America and hope Vince didn’t notice? Or did he have the same stupid sources too?

In theory this would have been a long term plan from Hogan but he was sent home on April 3 and the first vignette played on April 17. That would suggest that Mr. America was signed during that two week period as Stephanie couldn’t advertise him until he was signed. So he and Bischoff heard about Mr. American, got obsessed with signing him sight unseen, got into a bidding war to sign him, and then signed him in less than two weeks?

Back to the sources who hyped up Mr. America, did they sound like a San Francisco barber, a mouth from the south and a nasty sensation by any chance? Or did Hogan start doing this months ago on the off chance he lost at Wrestlemania? Oh and did Hogan sign the other contract “Mr. America”? And is he now getting two checks? There are so many questions I kind of need answered about this whole shindig. Unless this whole thing is Stephanie and Hogan being in cahoots with each other, this story really doesn’t make much sense.

Post break, Vince is told that Mr. America is here. So wait: did Mr. America pay off the production staff to lie and say they weren’t in Florida? Was the tape a fake? Did Hogan convince them all to fly back to Canada, set up a room to look like his office and then show up later? Why am I thinking about this more than I did in any class in college?

Matt Hardy vs. Eddie Guerrero

Non-title. Matt hates waking up before noon and eats slowly to savor his food. Eddie headlocks him down to start and the fans are entirely behind Guerrero. A springboard…something that seemed to have been edited gives Eddie two but Matt sends him chest first into the middle buckle to take over.

Back to back Side Effects set up a Ricochet for two on Eddie. The middle rope legdrop is broken up though and Eddie rolls some suplexes. Matt avoids the frog splash but can’t get the Twist of Fate. Instead it’s a middle rope legdrop to the back of the head for two. Matt tries another Side Effect, only to get rolled up (sweet) for the fast pin.

Rating: C. Matt was trying here, though I’m not sure what the point is in having a champion lose over and over. There are other heels you could have in this spot to protect the title but it’s not like there’s anyone around to challenge him for it at the moment. They could develop some more talent for the division but it’s not likely anytime soon.

Team Angle runs out and steals the gold medals back from Los Guerreros.

Big Show is with the FBI for some reason when some production guys carry a piece of equipment. As they walk by, a good sized guy in a blue mask can be seen.

Brian Kendrick vs. Jamie Noble

Brian is now officially Brian “Spanky” Kendrick. Before the match, Kendrick gets a CENA SUCKS chant going in honor of last week. Kendrick flips out of a wristlock to start and nips up into a kick to the chest. Sliced Bread #2 is broken up though and Kendrick is tossed outside where Nidia gets in a few kicks to the ribs.

Back in and a cravate doesn’t keep Kendrick in trouble for very long but a half crab has some more success. Kendrick fights up for a bit, only to get tossed into the corner for his efforts. An enziguri gives Kendrick two but he has to bail out of a moonsault. That’s fine as he lands on his feet and grabs Sliced Bread #2 for the pin.

Rating: C+. This didn’t have much time but they packed in some good stuff. As usual, these guys could be tearing the house down for the Cruiserweight Title but for some reason Matt is stuck as a midcard jobber. Let some of these guys have ten minutes somewhere and see what they can do, perhaps in a pay per view title match. Really, what could it hurt?

Cena is watching in the back when Mr. America comes up. John doesn’t believe his eyes.

We see the whole Big Show attacking Rey Mysterio scene from Backlash. Mysterio will be back next week.

Brock Lesnar is ready to team with Chris Benoit against A-Train and Big Show. As for the title match with Big Show, let’s make it a stretcher match. Do you know what that means? At Judgment Day, Big Show is leaving on a stretcher.

Vince is getting coffee when Funaki comes up to say Mr. America is here. The boss insists that he’s an impostor and makes Funaki make the coffee.

Here’s Mr. America as the first fifteen minutes of the show just wasn’t enough time. Vince and Stephanie are watching from a small office with what looks like the same furniture from Austin and Bischoff’s office last night. Even the plant is the same. Anyway, Vince insists that this is an impostor.

America finally starts talking and we cut to Vince’s panicked face. Back in the arena, America insists that he’s not Hulk Hogan. No, he’s actually a former 165lb accountant from Hoboken, New Jersey who bought Wrestlemania to see Hogan. There was something about Hogan that made him want to get in the gym and now he’s the physical specimen he is now. So he was 6’6 and 165lbs? That’s quite the odd visual.

Anyway here comes Vince to say that mask is coming off and Stephanie is going to come out here and make it happen. A quick distraction lets Vince get in a low blow but he can’t get the mask off. America shoves him away and right into Stephanie, who is knocked cold. The boss gets knocked to the floor and America carries Stephanie to the back. I’m guessing you can now add Stephanie to the list of people this story shouldn’t be about but will be anyway.

During the break, Stephanie was getting medical attention when Vince stormed in. She blames him for the injuries, of course. Vince freaks out and yells about Hogan.

Dawn Marie vs. Torrie Wilson

Sable is out to watch. They do a catfight for a bit until Torrie gets a sunset flip for the pin in less than a minute.

Post match Sable challenges Torrie to a bikini contest at the pay per view. Torrie unzips her gear to reveal a bra, which seems to be a yes. Considering Torrie is currently in Playboy and her entrance video is mainly her in bikinis, I’m not sure why someone is going to pay to see her in another swimsuit. The same is pretty much true of Sable but WWE doesn’t like to use common sense all the time.

Video on Kurt Angle.

Team Angle vs. Rikishi/Tajiri

Non-title. Rikishi knocks Charlie to the floor to start and sits on his chest for trying a sunset flip. He’s no Torrie Wilson. Tajiri comes in for a spinwheel kick to Shelton but Charlie offers a cheap shot to take over. A hard superkick drops Charlie though and the hot tag brings in Rikishi. Cole actually tries to convince us that Rikishi only weighs 350lbs, which might be the case if you cut off his upper half. Everything breaks down and Rikishi superkicks Haas and Tajiri adds the Tarantula. Shelton pulls Rikishi out though and it’s the superkick into the jackknife cover to put Tajiri away.

Rating: D+. The time issue strikes again as there’s only so much you can do with less than five minutes. Well that and with Rikishi in the match as he’s getting bigger and bigger every single week. I’m still not sure why Tajiri isn’t used in a more prominent role as he’s solid in the ring but stuck in jobbing roles like this one.

Los Guerreros run out and steal the picture of Angle and the gold medals.

John Cena vs. Rhyno

Kendrick is on commentary. Before the match, Cena promises to rip the nose off the rhinoceros and make him need a gynecologist. Rhyno hammers on him to start and kicks Cena in the side of the head to send Cena outside. Back in and Cena scores with a suplex before cranking on Rhyno’s arms. Rhyno slugs away but gets caught by the Throwback for two. Cena is back up in a hurry but walks into the spinebuster. Rhyno is down though so Cena goes for the chain. It’s Kendrick making the save though, allowing Rhyno to grab a rollup for the pin.

Rating: D+. Not a bad little power match here and it advances the entertaining Kendrick vs. Cena feud. Rhyno was playing it mostly even with Cena so it didn’t even feel like the last second fluke win. Cena needs a good win to keep his momentum though as he lost to Lesnar and is in a much lower level feud with Kendrick. I’m sure he’ll be fine though.

Cena goes after Kendrick and avoids a Gore from Rhyno, who hits the steps instead.

The FBI is planning something.

Judgment Day rundown.

Lesnar is on his way to the ring when he runs into Nunzio, who wants more respect. Nunzio hits him and gets Brock to run into a room, which the FBI barricades with a forklift. So he’s kind of dumb too? Big Show and A-Train are rather pleased and Show says he’s going to face Benoit on his own. Is there a reason Lesnar isn’t banging on the door to try to get out?

Chris Benoit vs. Big Show

Show has a stretcher with Mysterio, Benoit and Lesnar’s names on it. Benoit gets right in his face and is promptly chopped back down. Some shots to Show’s leg and head are shrugged off and it’s a big side slam to put him down. There’s a delayed suplex as Cole says Andre the Giant vs. Killer Khan was in 1986 (1981 really). Benoit fights out of a bearhug and dropkicks the knee, setting up the Swan Dive. The Crossface is broken up as A-Train distracts Benoit with the stretcher. That’s enough to set up the chokeslam and give Show the pin.

Rating: D. This was just a step above a squash though at least they kept it quick. Show beating Benoit with some help is an acceptable enough of a way to build him up for Lesnar, though the stretcher thing is another lame gimmick that feels very tacked on. They’d be better with something like Last Man Standing or a street fight or something but we get this lame idea instead. Also was there really a need to announce the tag match for an hour and a half and then switch it to a singles match at the last minute?

Benoit gets beaten down until Lesnar makes the save, only to take a beating of his own to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. The wrestling in the first half of the show saves it from being a failure but the overkill of Mr. America is already getting to be a lot. Aside from the litany of holes in the story’s logic, you can only assume that we’re heading towards America vs. Piper or McMahon (like O’Haire would get that spot). It’s probably going to be Piper and the thought of that makes my skin crawl. The story is fine for something simple that gets a few minutes a week but this was close to a quarter of the show. That’s too much for almost any story, especially one that doesn’t have a lot of depth like this one.

The rest of the show is up and down with some good matches that very little but not much in the storytelling department. Los Guerreros vs. Team Angle over Eddie and Chavo stealing stuff isn’t all that interesting and Sable vs. Torrie is what it is. That leaves you with Lesnar vs. Show, which isn’t doing much for the champ at all. Lesnar really needs a top opponent and Big Show just isn’t that person. Angle and Undertaker coming back will help things out but Lesnar has already beaten both of them. It might be, gulp, time to elevate someone for more than a month at a time.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/10/02/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-the-intercontinental-title-updated-version/

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

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

Main Event
Date: October 5, 2017
Location: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

We’re back to the point where you can pretty much guess what’s coming for a show like this. Odds are we’ll be seeing Dash Wilder losing again to go with a cruiserweight match, which isn’t the most interesting stuff in the world. As usual, it all comes down to which clips we get from Monday. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Dash Wilder vs. Heath Slater

Is this some kind of a joke that I’m not getting? Wilder has now faced Rhyno, then Slater, then Rhyno, then Slater again in four straight weeks. Dash throws a shirt at Slater to start but misses a charge out to the floor as we might be in for a bit of comedy here. Back in and Slater runs him over for two before grabbing a front facelock.

A belly to back suplex gets Dash out of trouble and he tosses Heath outside for a breather. Heath comes back in and eats a hard clothesline for his efforts before we hit the chinlock. Something like Wasteland into a backbreaker (cool) gets two on Slater but Dash charges into a rollup out of the corner for the pin at 5:33.

Rating: D+. The more I watch these matches, the more I think they’re just setting up the idea that Wilder isn’t much on his own but can be part of a really good tag team. Either that or they haven’t put a bit of thought into this and keep throwing Wilder out there because they have nothing better to do on this show and it doesn’t matter in the slightest anyway.

From Raw.

We look at Amore getting destroyed last week.

Here’s Enzo Amore to talk about the beating he took last week. He’s now put the cruiserweight division in the main event two weeks in a row and you’re absolutely right that he deserves it. Enzo talks about all the money he makes and all of his star power, but carrying the division has made his back hurt. He brings up the No Contact clause from last week and says there’s a new one tonight: if anyone attacks him, they’re fired. Now he’s on top of the throne but he doesn’t have any opponents.

Cue the cruiserweight division to surround Amore but he insults every single one of them in turn. This brings out Angle to say that none of the cruiserweights at ringside can lay a hand on him. HOWEVER, there’s a new member of the Cruiserweight division: Kalisto. The fight is on in a hurry with Kalisto easily beating the heck out of Enzo.

Also from Raw.

Seth Rollins vs. Braun Strowman

Rollins kicks at the ribs to start but has to slip out of a running powerslam attempt. For some reason Seth slaps him in the face, setting off a chase. A kick to Braun’s head connects but Braun launches him into the air for a big crash. We hit the chinlock for a bit before Seth fights up and sends him outside. A suicide dive is knocked out of the air though and we take a break.

Back with Rollins getting tossed via a fall away slam but sidestepping a charge. Now the suicide dives connect, only to have the springboard knee to the face get two. A great looking superkick drops Braun but the wind up knee is countered with a clothesline. The running powerslam ends Rollins at 10:27.

Rating: C. Not a bad little match here but there was no question about Strowman winning. Rollins is great for something like this though as he’s legitimate competition for Strowman and makes him look great even in defeat. It was a fun match and a good way to open the show, which is all you can ask for.

Strowman gives him another powerslam for fun. He goes back for more but Dean Ambrose runs out for a save attempt, only to get chokeslammed for his efforts. Another running powerslam leaves both champions laying. Strowman leaves and here are Sheamus and Cesaro to pick the bones.

Lince Dorado/Rich Swann vs. Tony Nese/Noam Dar

Dorado and Dar start things off with Noam begging off in the corner early on. He goes outside to fix his hair though and quickly tags off to Nese in what is probably a smart move. It’s already time to work on Tony’s arm with Lince and Rich taking turns. Stereo dropkicks drop Nese but Dar trips Lince to take over.

Back from a break with Dorado grabbing a sunset flip but there’s no referee to count. The handspring Stunner gets Dorado out of trouble though and the hot tag brings in Swann. A bunch of kicks have the villains in trouble and the spinning kick to the head sets up the Phoenix splash to end Dar at 8:15.

Rating: C-. This didn’t have time to go anywhere when nearly half of it was spent in a break. The perk of the cruiserweights is you can throw them all out there in virtually any combination and have a watchable match. That’s very valuable and something WWE knows how to exploit. That being said, what has happened to Dar? He’s gone from a featured player in the division to nothing in just a few months.

And finally from Raw again.

Intercontinental Title: Roman Reigns vs. The Miz

Miz is defending and comes out ala the Shield with the Miztourage. Reigns wastes no time in bailing to the floor and beating the heck out of the Miztourage to make things even. Axel staggers through the crowd so Reigns follows him up for a chair to the back. Dallas gets one as well before Reigns just unloads on both of them with multiple chair shots. The bell rings after a break with Reigns headbutting the champ on the floor. Miz avoids a charge though and Reigns winds up in the crowd. That’s only good for a nine count but Miz catches him in a short DDT for two.

We hit the chinlock for a bit before Miz switches to just choking on the ropes. Back from a break with Miz hitting the YES Kicks but getting caught in a sitout powerbomb for a very near fall. The Superman Punch is countered into the Skull Crushing Finale for the same and Miz is stunned. The second Superman Punch connects for an even closer two and it’s Reigns’ turn to be shocked. Reigns loads up the spear but Sheamus and Cesaro pull him out for the DQ at 10:47.

Rating: B-. This was good while it lasted but the ending hurt it a lot. They’re not hiding what they’re going for in the post match stuff and while there’s nothing wrong with that, I could go for it not being so heavy handed. There were some awesome near falls in this one and it was really entertaining at times, but the time factor and the storyline stuff isn’t great.

Reigns gets destroyed post match. The fans chant for the Shield as Reigns takes a TripleBomb. Miz, Sheamus and Cesaro do the Shield pose. That would be a heck of a lot better than Miz and the Miztourage.

Later in the show.

A banged up Reigns is in the back when Ambrose comes in. They stare at each other a bit until Rollins comes in as well. Ambrose leaves with Rollins going the opposite way. Reigns thinks things over to end the show. No one ever said or did anything more than look at the others.

Overall Rating: C. They packed in all the big stuff from Raw here and that’s a nice feeling. The original content here is really getting repetitive though and they need to change things up a bit, just for the sake of not being so dull. It’s ok to not have Wilder lose for a single week or just throw in a tag match. Not a bad show here but skip the original stuff.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/10/02/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-the-intercontinental-title-updated-version/

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

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

The idea of a wrestling dynasty is one deeply ingrained into the WWE’s most ardent fans. Undeniably, dynasties such as the Hart Foundation, and the generations of Guerreros, Flairs and Anoa’is, have made professional wrestling the sports entertainment phenomenon it is today.

Admittedly, the likes of Kurt Angle and Dolph Ziggler are living evidence of the sort of advantage that only a pre-WWE wrestling background can provide. However, a lot of WWE legends past and present did not have the luxury of a wrestling origin. While many fans are already aware of the history behind such wrestlers, the way they have utilized their skills to improve the profile of the WWE.

The Undertaker – Basketball

A WWE Hall of Fame entrant, Mark William Callaway always wanted to be a basketball player growing up. A man of learning, the giant who would eventually become known as The Undertaker studied sports management at Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth, and represented the college Basketball side in the 1985/86 season. Save for an attire-based gimmick, there is nothing particularly concrete that can translate from the basketball court to the ring. Nonetheless, it is clear that The Undertaker, who played as a towering center for the Rams, had the taste for (appropriately) being the center of attention whenever possible.

The impact on WWE: His gloomy, death-themed, yet no less dramatic entrances were a great foil to the rowdier ones of his Golden Era counterparts, such as Hulk Hogan. In time, his differential persona would prove crucial to the WWE’s success.

Mark Henry – Weightlifting

WWE’s ‘World’s Strongest Man’, Mark Henry was an established name in powerlifting/weightlifting before he joined WWE. He was placed tenth overall in the super-heavyweight division at the 1992 Olympics. He then went on to win gold, silver and bronze in the 1995 Pan-Am Games. Despite being beset by injuries at various points in his career, Henry has had a 20-plus-year tenure with the WWE, having initially been signed on a $10 million ten-year deal. Despite now nearing the end of his days in active competition, the Texan stands among the favorites at +15000 to win the 2018 Royal Rumble, and could prove a prudent selection for a risk-free bet.

The impact on WWE: Although a character built on brute power and strength was always going to be his obvious WWE persona, his prowess within the federation undoubtedly inspired others that were all power at the cost of acrobatic athleticism.

Batista – Pro bodybuilding

Batista is well-known as one of the youngest superstars to rise to stardom in the WWE. However, before he became a successful WWE superstar, Batista had a difficult life. He was born in a relatively poor family and raised in poverty. To make ends meet, he initially worked as a bouncer before switching to a career in bodybuilding. He is notable for once stating that bodybuilding changed his life for the better, and to say it paid dividends would be an extreme understatement. A winner of WWE silverware, his debut came during the early days of the Raw Aggression era, and (as the name of the era suggests) Batista was able to translate his real-world experiences into the squared circle.

The impact on WWE: Though the expansion of the roster and allocations to Raw and Smackdown were always inevitable events, Batista’s arrival illustrated the importance of ensuring that both brands had a fair share of fiery all-rounders that could evolve the good work of the Attitude Era in a constructive way.