Monday Night Raw
Date: December 27, 1993
Location: Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Poughkeepsie, New York
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jacques, Pierre

It’s the final show of the year and that means….well nothing really as one of the major matches announced for this week is Marty Jannetty vs. Johnny Polo. I have no idea why that’s supposed to make me want to stick around and watch the show but no one ever accused 1993 of making sense. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Yokozuna/Ludvig Borga vs. Lex Luger/Tatanka in what should have been a pretty hot house show feud. I don’t think it ever happened on TV, even though it should have been a layup.

The announcers preview the show and it’s as weird as it would seem to be.

Lex Luger vs. Barry Horowitz

Luger sends him into the ropes as the announcers speak a lot of French for the running joke of the show. I mean, it’s not a funny joke but it is in fact a running joke. Barry pokes him in the eye to get out of some arm work as we hear about Bret and Owen Hart getting a Tag Team Title shot at the Royal Rumble. Horowitz actually gets in some offense as the Quebecers switch over to Spanish. Lex shrugs it off and grabs a powerslam before finishing with a superplex.

Rating: D+. Better than I was expecting here with Barry getting in a good amount of offense. The superplex was a good option for a finisher instead of the Rack, which I believe Borga was using at this point. It’s always cool to see a simple move used as a finisher and it’s not like it’s hard to do. Just let the move get some pins and it’s instantly a finisher. Why is that so complicated?

We look back at Johnny Polo interfering in a match between the 1-2-3 Kid and Marty Jannetty, causing a double countout.

Polo brags about beating both the Kid and Jannetty at the same time so tonight it’ll be easy to beat Jannetty on his own.

Marty Jannetty vs. Johnny Polo

Polo actually gets a takedown to start (Jacques: “Isn’t that two points? Call the Steiners!”) and scores with an armdrag for good measure. Marty comes back with an atomic drop for the funny selling and it’s off to the arm. A missed charge sends Marty outside in a heap though and Johnny does a fairly scary scream into the camera. Back in and they collide as this is already going longer than I was expecting. Can you imagine Ricky Steamboat vs. Mr. Fuji going this long? Then again that was a Kung Fu Challenge and not a match so it’s not the fairest comparison.

Marty’s jumping back elbow sets up a high crossbody for two. Polo gets dropkicked outside so Pierre goes to check on him, earning himself a baseball slide. A second distraction fails and Marty gets in a superkick but opts to dive onto Pierre like a villain would do. Back in and Marty grabs a sunset flip but Pierre holds Polo’s hands to give him the pin.

Rating: D+. That’s quite the long match but I always like Polo as he was just having a blast making fun of everyone. It’s always cool to have a manager who can wrestle a match if the need arises as it can add a lot of options to the stories. Not a terrible match here but WAY longer than it needed to be.

Pierre is ejected….from commentary. Can a referee do that? Isn’t that taking your job a bit far? Especially when it’s not even in a match.

Yokozuna dreams about being Santa Claus and wakes up, realizing it was only a nightmare.

Doink the Clown vs. Spike Gray

It’s clearly no longer Matt Borne playing the character as he’s taller and skinnier than he was a few weeks back. Before the match, Dink gives Doink some gum. Spike gets some as well but it’s something like a mini-mousetrap. Dink kicks him in the shin, which isn’t a DQ because the referee is probably too busy ejecting the popcorn vendor from section 138 because he’s a power mad nutjob. Dink punches Gray in the face, setting up a German suplex for the pin. How in the world are these two supposed to be faces? I mean, clowns are evil by definition and now they cheat? Think this stuff through Vince.

The Royal Rumble Report fills up time. The only new stuff here is the Hart Brothers saying they’ll win the Tag Team Titles.

Crush vs. Mike Moraldo

Crush knocks him down without much effort to start as the announcers talk about the Quebecers vs. the Hart Brothers. Talk about a match that would really set the company on fire down the road. The head vice ends Moraldo without too much effort.

Undertaker is still making that casket. I had no idea it took that much effort to put one of those things together. Or maybe Undertaker is just really bad at his job and should take up something else. Like motorcycle maintenance.

Bret tells us to not drink and drive.

We look at Alundra Blayze defeating Heidilee (yes it’s one word) Morgan for the Women’s Title. This looked like every bad women’s match you would have seen in this era.

Kwang is coming. Hopefully he leaves even faster.

Razor Ramon vs. Derek Domino

Non-title and non-gold chains for Ramon. Razor start with the driving shoulders but Derek makes the mistake of slapping him in the face. Domino (whose singlet is half down for some reason) gets sat on the top rope for a super fall away slam. Razor slaps him in the back of the head a few times and grabs the abdominal stretch. That goes nowhere so it’s the super belly to back into the Razor’s Edge for the pin.

Rating: D. Yeah fine as Razor continues to be one of the best midcard acts of all time. The belly to back superplex is something that doesn’t get the credit it deserves as Razor just tosses people around with the thing. You can hear all the talk about Shawn Michaels and the Intercontinental Title and that’s only going to lead to good things all around.

Overall Rating: D+. It wasn’t the kindest month to Raw but since the show debuted less than a year ago, it’s not like they have a lot to compare it to. The longer matches were a bit better this week though and there was no Men on a Mission or Jeff Jarrett so we’ll call this a slight improvement over last week.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 20, 1993
Location: Westchester County Civic Center, White Plains, New York
Attendance: 3,000
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Shawn Michaels

We’re getting close to wrapping up the year and that means it’s time to get ready for the Royal Rumble. Last week focused on setting up the casket match which will see Undertaker challenge Yokozuna for the WWF Title and we’ve heard rumblings of Bret Hart vs. his brother Owen. At least one of them is awesome. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Ludvig Borga beating Tatanka back in October, ending his two plus year undefeated streak. Borga then helped put him on the shelf so tonight it’s all about revenge. Tatanka: “Tonight, I’m out for revenge!” Well that makes things pretty clear.

Vince and Shawn chat about tonight’s show.

Jeff Jarrett vs. PJ Walker

Two future World Champions, which would have made the audience shake their heads in 1993. Now it makes me want to cry as my head shakes but that’s just me. Jeff struts away from an Irish whip but gets hiptossed down. That’s about it for Walker at the moment though as Jeff gets in a dropkick. The announcers talk about Jack Tunney being up for Secretary of Defense as Jeff misses a kneedrop, only to grab a running DDT for the pin.

Rating: D. Sweet goodness Jarrett was dull. I’m not a fan of country music and now I have to hear about it every single time Jarrett is in the ring. The running DDT was fine for a finisher but DANG the rest of him was someone who was only going to work in Memphis. It’s such a simple style of offense and that’s not going to make it on the main stage.

Spend your money to tell the WWF that Lex Luger should be in the Royal Rumble!

Men on a Mission vs. Duane Gill/Barry Hardy

Mo takes Gill (with hair here instead of his better known bald look) down with an armbar and actually manages to avoid any major injuries. It must be a good night. Mabel comes in and drops the big fat elbow as the announcers talk about someone dying from eating pigs. Michael Cole doesn’t even sound this awkward. Vince isn’t done yet as he suggests that the Royal Rumble could come down to Mo vs. Mabel. Imagine that: Mabel as a main eventer. That’ll be the day. More slow paced arm work continues as Shawn sounds a bit “under the weather”. A reverse DDT and the middle rope splash end Hardy.

Rating: F. I used to love Men on a Mission but WOW they haven’t aged well. Mabel was acceptable enough for the big fat monster but Mo might be the most worthless wrestler I can remember from this era. You could even say that Hardy and Gill were more valuable as they give me flashbacks to Gillberg and Barry gives me imagines of Broken Barry Horowitz.

The Royal Rumble Report runs down the card and the nine names in the Rumble.

Ludvig Borga is ready to crush Tatanka again.

Tatanka vs. Ludvig Borga

Tatanka chops away and we get a graphic listing the announcers. In case you’re flipping through and hoping to avoid Rio Rogers I guess. Borga is in early trouble and gets sent into the post, meaning it’s WAR PATH time. A high crossbody gets two but Borga gets in a clothesline for his first offense over two minutes in. The former boxer starts hammering away in the corner and gets two off a bad looking powerslam. Tatanka starts the comeback but here’s Yokozuna for the DQ.

Rating: D+. I always liked Borga but time haven’t been the nicest to him. He has a good enough look and was a solid character but the in-ring work wasn’t exactly strong. On the other hand, Tatanka is a good example of someone who lived WAY beyond his expiration date and turned a one note character into a pretty nice career.

Tatanka gets double teamed but Lex Luger makes the save with a slam on Yokozuna.

The announcers bicker about what we just saw. Shawn doesn’t like Luger using the forearm, which sounds like the start of a feud that never happened.

Lou Albano is presented to the crowd for no apparent reason.

Adam Bomb vs. Mark Thomas

Bomb shoves him around and rips at Thomas’ face. Vince: “Thomas is a big Barney fan!” That’s the topic of the match with Shawn accusing Barney of charging 427% interest for a personal appearance. As you digest that brilliance, Thomas is powerbombed for the pin.

Thurman Plugg is coming.

We look at Owen Hart challenging his brother last week.

Bret says no way.

Owen Hart vs. Mike Bell

Bell actually wins a fight over the arm to start so Owen hits something like a headscissors driver (he does have a tendency to drive people’s heads into the mat) to take over. Shawn accuses Bret of getting more Christmas presents than Owen as Hart drops a middle rope elbow. A belly to belly sets up the Sharpshooter to make Bell tap.

Rating: D+. Bell got in WAY more offense than I was expecting to see here and that makes Hart’s win mean just a bit more. The announcers also made sure to point out the fact that Owen got in a lot of original offense instead of just using Bret’s stuff. They’re trying to show the difference between the two and that’s going to set up the feud even better.

We go to Undertaker’s shop (complete with a sign, meaning it’s an official registered business, which is quite the departure from what you would expect from Undertaker) where he’s working on Yokozuna’s double sized casket.

Headshrinkers vs. Phil Apollo/Jerry Seavey

Apollo would wind up playing Doink a few years later. Samu hammers away on everyone as we hear about Donald Trump’s upcoming wedding. Their conclusion: Trump is no Heart Break Kid. Seavey gets beaten from one side of the ring to the other and a double Stroke sets up a top rope splash for the pin.

Overall Rating: D. Nothing to see here but it’s a long way towards the Royal Rumble. The Bret vs. Owen stuff is starting to go somewhere though and that’s one of the best feuds the company has ever put together. Unfortunately the rest of the stuff was as boring as you could imagine with Jarrett being a major low point for the show.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 13, 1993
Location: Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Poughkeepsie, New York
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jim Cornette

With Bobby Heenan gone, it’s probably time to start the very long running tradition of rotating commentators to go with Vince. Other than that we’re getting close to the start of the build to the Royal Rumble, which means we’re in for a long six weeks or so. If nothing else there’s Randy Savage vs. Fatu. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

We look at the end of last week’s show with Heenan being thrown out of the building.

Vince brings in Cornette, with a Santa Claus cover on the tennis racket. That’s so corny that it works perfectly for him.

Randy Savage vs. Fatu

After Afa finally gets out of the ring, Savage charges into an elbow. I wonder if that’s harder than his head. Randy does that one spot that you only do to a Samoan where he slams him head first into the mat. The ensuing superkick puts Savage on the floor where he tries to send Fatu head first into the steps. To paraphrase Savage at Wrestlemania IX: wrong again Slim Jim breath.

Back in and the beating continues as I have a feeling we’re in the “Savage gets beaten up for five minutes and then hits the elbow for the pin” formula. Savage gets sent outside so Afa can get in a few shots, followed by a shrunken head (just go with it) shot for two. Fatu goes up but gets crotched, allowing Savage to hit the top rope ax handle to the floor. Back in and a clothesline sets up the elbow to put the Samoan away.

Rating: D+. Just a squash here until we got to the ending, which really didn’t make Savage look all that great. Then again that formula got Savage a few World Titles in WCW so maybe there was something for it. Also, how weird is it to think that Fatu got into the Hall of Fame on his own and not in a tag team? It’s a stretch to have him in there at all but it goes to show you that you never know what you might get out of the right gimmick.

Todd Pettengill makes an appeal to the fans to vote for Savage to be allowed back on WWF Mania. Gee I wonder if they will. Well I wouldn’t for 99 cents a call.

Lex Luger says don’t do drugs and I begin to laugh, albeit in a sad way.

Smoking Gunns vs. Steve Smyth/Jim Massenger

We’ll say Jim gets beaten up first with a double legsweep putting him down as Cornette talks about going to Toronto to beg Jack Tunney to keep Luger out of the Royal Rumble. Lou Albano comes out to scout with Vince talking about Lou managing more Tag Team Champions in WWF history. Cornette: “Give me time! Give me time!” Bart dropkicks Massenger down, followed by a top rope bulldog to give Billy the pin. Total squash.

We look back at Shawn Michaels vs. the 1-2-3 Kid last week with Razor Ramon’s failed save attempt. Shawn gave him two (fairly bad for the sake of safety) Razor’s Edges on the floor. Good angle to advance a good feud.

IRS vs. Todd Mata

Before the match, IRS opens the briefcase and shows off Razor’s stolen jewelry. IRS throws him into the corner and grabs a backbreaker as Cornette comes up with a variety of excuses for what was really in the briefcase. Oh and he’s dating Princess Diana. IRS grabs a belly to back suplex of all things for the pin. To be fair his finisher was a clothesline so that’s hardly a stretch.

And now, Yokozuna as Santa Claus! Don’t worry though as it was just a nightmare. Why was Mr. Fuji right next to Yokozuna’s bed? Is that in your standard manager contract?

Undertaker vs. JS Storm

That’s one heck of a pop for Undertaker, who was one of the few hot acts even at this point. Undertaker throws him outside and into the steps as Cornette rants about the upcoming casket match. The chokeslam and Tombstone keep this one short.

Undertaker puts him in a bodybag for fun.

Jeff Jarrett debuts next week.

Rick Martel vs. Tim McNeany

I always forget that Martel existed after about 1990. A crossbody gives Tim two and he gets the same off a sunset flip. Martel elbows him in the jaw and grabs a front facelock. Tim actually makes a quick comeback but misses a dropkick, setting up the Boston crab for the submission. Better than I was expecting for a change.

On Superstars, Owen Hart was sick of hearing about Bret and challenged him to a match.

Bret Hart vs. Brooklyn Brawler

Hart starts with a hiptoss before going after the arm. The arm work continues as you can tell Bret isn’t exactly interested in working hard here. Brawler chokes in the corner a bit but gets slammed off the top, leaving Cornette to compare the Brawler to Rush Limbaugh. Bret starts in with the Five Moves of Doom and finishes with the Sharpshooter.

Rating: D. This was exactly what you would expect from a five minute Bret vs. Brawler match. If nothing else it gave the announcers a chance to hype up Bret vs. Owen, which sounds like a very solid match on paper alone when you ignore the good story behind it. Bret wasn’t exactly energized out there but it’s hard to blame him for being a bit lethargic.

Overall Rating: D-. Watching this episode felt like the stereotype that comes with the older shows: the longer matches are bad and the squash matches aren’t long enough to care about. The Royal Rumble and Wrestlemania are starting to shape up though and one of those is outstanding so at least I have something to look forward to.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 6, 1993
Location: Westchester County Civic Center, White Plains, New York
Attendance: 3,000
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Bobby Heenan

Dang I just finished the January 1994 shows and now I get to see how we got there. We’re just past the Survivor Series where Lex Luger and AMERICA defeated the evil foreigners (one of them all the way from Hawaii) but more importantly, Bret and Owen Hart took their first steps towards an amazing feud. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks back at Shawn Michaels attacking Razor Ramon during a match against Diesel. The 1-2-3 Kid made the save and we’ve got a match tonight. This was around the time when Shawn was suspended for a steroids violation while still Intercontinental Champion. He returned and claimed to still be champion, setting up a huge feud.

Vince and Bobby preview the show.

Shawn Michaels vs. 1-2-3 Kid

Shawn has the Intercontinental Title but isn’t champion. They start fast with Kid firing off the kicks to send Shawn outside for a springboard dive. We hit a long headlock until Kid makes the mistake of trying to climb the corner, allowing Shawn to suplex him down for the break. That’s fine with Kidd who sends Shawn shoulder first into the post, only to dive into a powerslam on the floor.

We take a break and come back with Shawn working on the ribs to keep things slow, which isn’t something you often see Michaels do. Another suplex gives Shawn two and it’s off to a backbreaker. Back up and a spinning kick sets up even more kicks (to be fair, kids don’t have the most varied offense), only to miss something like a Swanton as we take a second break.

Just like earlier we come back to Shawn in control and hitting a Razor’s Edge, only to pull the Kid up at two. Vince thinks that should be a DQ because Vince has some weird ideas at times. A second Razor’s Edge brings out Razor Ramon to chase Shawn up the aisle. Shawn trips but Diesel gets in a cheap shot from the curtain as I’m guessing the match was thrown out somewhere in there, even though it should have been a countout win for the Kid.

Rating: B. Good match here as the Kliq (not yet formed of course) continues to be the best workers in the company and are always more than willing to work with each other. This was much better than your average match around this time, which isn’t exactly shocking given who was in there.

Shawn gives Razor the Edge on the floor, albeit nearly in slow motion to prevent a bad case of death. A second Edge keeps Razor in trouble as Vince is LOSING IT on commentary.

Quebecers vs. Bert Centeno/Mike Walsh

Non-title. Centeno starts with Jacques and slaps him in the face before bailing out to the floor. Walsh comes in and is sent hard into the corner as the beating begins. A backdrop sends Pierre onto Centeno and the Cannonball ends a long squash.

Rating: D. It’s not a good sign when the best part of the match was Johnny Polo sitting in a chair with his feet up reading a magazine. Then again, Polo was often the best part of the Quebecers’ matches. These squashes are only going to get you so far and the Quebecers weren’t the best option in the first place.

Post match Centeno is put in Polo’s chair and clotheslined out.

Royal Rumble ad.

Owen Hart doesn’t want to hear about Bret winning Superstar of the Year. He has a surprise coming.

Doink the Clown vs. Tony DeVito

DeVito is nice enough to let Doink stroll Dink around before we get going. Dink gets on the apron for no apparent reason as DeVito gets caught in an armbar. Another takedown keeps Tony in trouble as you can hear the crowd going very quiet for this, which isn’t the biggest surprise. Dink is still on the apron and being rather annoying but that’s standard for him.

A German suplex drops DeVito and we hit a headlock as we hear about Star Wars airing on USA. Another takedown has Vince complaining about how many times Doink has done pretty much the same thing. The Whoopee Cushion ends a squash that has me longing for the Quebecers match.

Rating: D-. WAY too long here as Doink has lost everything after turning heel. This was a really boring match and Dink continues to be far more annoying than he really should have been. Given that he’s a small clown, that’s quite a bit of an accomplishment. Bad squash with the five minute runtime being ridiculous.

Jeff Jarrett and his unnamed friend (with his awesome hat) walk the streets of Nashville and complain about never getting a break.

We look back at Crush attacking Randy Savage, which somehow got Savage suspended.

Crush vs. Tony Roy

Heenan says Mr. Fuji is very happy because tomorrow is the anniversary of Pearl Harbor. This is the regular phone call match with Savage calling in from the United Kingdom. Crush shrugs off the offense and hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker as we hear about Savage’s time as a macho baby. The slow beating continues as Savage’s reception cutting in and out. I think he’s giving us a salad recipe though. A gorilla press onto the top rope puts Tony away.

Rating: D. This was all about the phone call which was all to set up Savage making his in-ring return next week to face Fatu. The best part though was Vince telling Bobby that Gorilla Monsoon called in earlier today but it was a LOCAL call. The fear in Heenan’s voice was perfect and I think that might be leading somewhere.

We run down next week’s card and heeeeeere’s Gorilla. Monsoon has good news and bad news for Heenan. The good news is he’s won a free trip. Heenan: “I don’t care to go anywhere!” The bad news is Monsoon grabs him by the jacket and literally drags him out of the arena. Heenan’s luggage is waiting next to the door as Gorilla throws both him and it out of the building (and the company as he was off to WCW). Heenan looks close to tears as he salutes the building and leaves.

Overall Rating: C+. That one match really is enough to carry the whole show but the ending is actually a little sad. Heenan never was his old self in WCW and it’s a shame to see him go. At least it was in a funny moment with Monsoon getting to do it. Those two had some of the best chemistry ever and Heenan’s line of “I wish Monsoon was here” at the Hall of Fame gets me every time. Not a good show, but check out that opener.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

That’s really what they’re calling the July pay per view.

https://twitter.com/AACenter/status/857973196364029952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2F411mania.com%2Fwrestling%2Fbrock-lesnar-defending-the-universal-title-at-new-great-balls-of-fire-ppv%2F

And Lesnar is defending.  Was the Wrestling Classic not available?  Or The Big Event?  Or what about High School Confidential?

Impact Wrestling
Date: April 27, 2017
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Angelo Dinero

It’s back to Orlando and of course that means more from the battle of the announcers. Last week’s show ended with Low Ki becoming the new X-Division Champion but the last thing we saw was Jeremy Borash finally punching Josh Matthews in the face. I’m not sure where we go next but I have a feeling this doesn’t end until Slammiversary in July. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of last week’s show. Rewatching it doesn’t make it better.

Opening sequence.

The announcers preview the show….and here’s Josh Matthews. This company will not tolerate bullying announcers and Borash is J. B. Loser because yes, this feud is now a parody/reference to the JBL/Mauro feud. Borash is suspended from commentary and gone indefinitely. Josh takes his place on commentary. So yeah: not only has Impact decided to have this feud keep going but now it’s referencing a feud that caused Mauro Ranallo some mental health issues along with his job.

Trevor Lee vs. Matt Sydal

Sydal is the former Evan Bourne and used to wrestle for the company. Therefore, the announcement of this being his debut is inaccurate as it would be his return, though that’s the least of this company’s problems. Sydal kicks at the legs to start but gets tossed outside. Back in and they trade some kicks with Sydal hitting something like Big Show’s Log Roll (standing legdrop) for two, only to have to deal with Gregory Helms. That goes badly for the Helms Dynasty though as some heel miscommunication sets up the shooting star press to give Sydal the pin at 4:45.

Rating: C-. That would now be two people in the X-Division using the shooting star press as their finisher. Sydal felt like someone out of the Cruiserweight Classic here with a bunch of kicks and then a high flying finisher. The division really needs some fresh blood but I’m not sure how much value Sydal really offers.

Sienna doesn’t think much of Karen Jarrett.

Here’s Ethan Carter III for a chat. After making fun of the “Make Impact Great” line, Carter talks about Bruce Prichard telling him to look in the mirror. Carter did just that and saw a demigod. He’s tired of hearing the fans telling him that they liked him better as a bad guy. Carter is going to Slammiversary to recover the glory that he never should have lost in the first place. That only leaves James Storm, who is all talk and doesn’t need to be in Carter’s world.

Cue Storm to say he’s not here to dance because he hasn’t had enough to drink and Carter isn’t a pretty lady. Storm calls him fugly and asks for a fight but Carter walks out. One more insult brings Ethan back inside for the fight with James easily getting the better of it. Carter hides behind a production assistant though and he gets in a low blow to leave Storm laying. This was a good idea for a segment but Storm was too calm about what happened last week.

KM yells at a waiter who thought the large man called his meal good. Apparently that’s what’s wrong with America today. This was basically a modern version of the Razor Ramon vignettes.

Christina Von Eerie is the GFW Women’s Champion and will fight anyone.

GFW Women’s Title: Christina Von Eerie vs. Ava Storie

Von Eerie is defending and starts fast with a running boot to the face. A few OY OY OY chants look to set up a fireman’s carry but Storie slips out and hammers away. Josh brags about breaking JB’s streak of consecutive Impact’s because he forgets that JB was already on the show. Storie puts her on the middle rope but gets caught in a kind of super Backstabber to retain Von Eerie’s title at 2:58. Von Eerie was fine but forcing the GFW Champions in still doesn’t quite work.

Swoggle comes through the crowd and messes with Spud’s hair.

Low Ki talks about wanting to revive the X-Division, which is always changing.

Video on Davey Richards vs. Eddie Edwards.

Alberto El Patron thinks he should be #1 contender but here’s Magnus, who says he should get the shot because the GFW Title is a golden ticket. Stephanie Jarrett comes in and makes a GFW Title match for the #1 contendership.

Video on Moose, complete with Monday Night Football music.

Grand Championship: Moose vs. Davey Richards

Moose is defending and has NFL Pro Bowlers D’Angelo Williams and Gary Barnidge in his corner. Moose throws Richards into the corner to start but gets superkicked in the leg to bring him off the ropes. Actually hang on a second as Davey stops to kiss Angelina Love. We hit a Figure Four for a long time until Moose grabs the rope with three seconds left.

Davey easily wins the first round but gets caught in an early powerbomb to start the second. Moose’s moonsault gets two but the Game Changer is blocked by more kicks. A hard running clothesline turns Davey inside out for two but he grabs the ropes until the clock runs out.

Moose wins the round to tie it up and dropkicks Davey out to the floor to start the third. Back in and Davey powerbombs his way out of a belly to belly superplex, followed by a top rope double stomp for two. We hit an ankle lock but here’s Eddie Edwards to jump Davey at 9:30 to keep the title on Moose. A previous Grand Championship match was No DQ but I don’t think the company even understands why this is still a thing.

Rating: C. The ending doesn’t help as they can’t even remember the rules for this title but at least it was a good match before we got there. They’re building Moose up as a champion that means something and that’s going to make the title change feel like something a lot more important when it finally happens.

The NFL guys shove Richards down and Barnidge gets in a slam. A few weeks ago he has one of the best brawls the company has seen in months and now he’s taking a bump that Rockstar Spud probably would have taken.

Swoggle rips up Spud’s notes so Spud pulls off Swoggle’s pants.

Matt Sigmon vs. Kongo Kong

Kongo has Laurel Van Ness, Sienna and KM with him. Sigmon’s shots to the ribs have no effect and Kongo gives him a sitout powerslam. The Cannonball sets up the top rope splash for the pin at 2:11.

Fallah Bahh/Mario Bokara vs. Veterans of War

The Veterans are Mayweather (Crimson) and Wilcox (Jax Dane, former NWA World Champion). Thankfully Mayweather’s previous character is acknowledged but Josh would rather talk about the (admittedly awesome) deals on ShopTNA.com. Mario gets backdropped so it’s off to the huge Bahh. Wilcox hits a very impressive delayed Samoan drop and a High/Low gets two on Fallah. A double suplex has no effect on Mayweather so it’s a Magic Killer for the pin on Mario at 3:30.

Rating: C+. VOW looked good and I’d be interested in seeing how their offense looks on a normal sized opponent. My goodness Bahh and Bokara looked worthless here. They’re the Monster Factory Tag Team Titles because we NEED to acknowledge a training school’s titles. If you’re going to have them lose a match in such short fashion, just use jobbers.

Mayweather says the Veterans of War aren’t just characters because it’s who they are. He says they’d answer the call to go fight again at the drop of a hat but for now, they’re bringing the fight to Impact. They look forward to getting a shot at the Tag Team Titles because together, they are one. That worked very well and this team looks a lot better than most of the recent additions.

Swoggle, now in a towel, beats on Spud with a HAMMER. He hits him probably seven or eight times and is ejected by security. I know Swoggle isn’t full sized but he’s a professional wrestler and presumably lifts weights so shouldn’t these hammer shots break bones or potentially kill Spud?

Eli Drake rants about being ignored and Tyrus doesn’t think much of it.

Tag Team Titles: Decay vs. LAX

LAX is defending and this is a street fight. It’s a brawl to start (as it should be) with Decay getting the better of it, including Abyss taking both champs down with a double clothesline. The barbed wire board is thrown in and it’s off to a break. Back with a large selection of weapons in the ring and Homicide hitting Abyss in the back with a chair.

It’s time for the kendo stick shots to the back as the champs keep dominating. Abyss saves Steve from a double superplex and throws him onto both champs. A chokeslam gets no cover so Abyss pelts a chair at Ortiz’s head. Rosemary mists Abyss by mistake though, allowing Santana to spear him through a barbed wire board. Diamante German suplexes Rosemary and Abyss is sandwiched between two barbed wire boards.

Steve comes back in though and gets two off a Death Valley Driver with Konnan making the save. Thankfully Steve doesn’t bother with Konnan but he does have to deal with Homicide. That goes nowhere so Steve puts Ortiz on a table and covers him with tacks, only to have Homicide make another save. The Street Sweeper through the table retains the titles at 13:37.

Rating: C+. Good brawl with the ending looking better than anything else, though it wasn’t much of a surprise to have LAX win. They’re a better team than I thought we were going to get so the tag division is starting to look good for the first time in a long time. Unfortunately that’s it for Decay as Steve is WWE bound but at least Decay was fun while they lasted.

A lot of posing ends the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This show started off really, really bad but the second half was a good bit better. The tag division is going to have to carry the show as the main event stuff with the multiple World Titles is getting already tiresome but that’s the case up and down the card. I’m sure it’s no coincidence that the best division at the moment is one of the only ones with a single title. There’s some very bad stuff on here though with the JB/Josh opening segment being more sickening than anything else and Kongo Kong being an embarrassment but the show somehow worked well enough to pass for another week.

Results

Matt Sydal b. Trevor Lee – Shooting star press

Christina Von Eerie b. Ava Storie – Super Backstabber

Davey Richards b. Moose via DQ when Eddie Edwards interfered

Kongo Kong b. Matt Sigmon – Top rope splash

Veterans of War b. Fallah Bahh/Mario Bokara – Magic Killer to Bokara

LAX b. Decay – Street Sweeper through a table to Steve

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 25, 2002
Location: North Charleston Coliseum, North Charleston, South, Carolina
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

We’re still in the Shawn Michaels Era and he’s actually defending the title this week against Rob Van Dam. Other than that we’re still waiting on the return of HHH, who was injured at Survivor Series but probably needs to grace us with his presence again. Other than that, I’d assume we’ll get a bunch of Testicle jokes. Let’s get to it.

We open with a long recap of Shawn winning the title and Van Dam earning the shot last week.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Titles: Christian/Chris Jericho vs. Dudley Boyz

Christian and Jericho are defending. D-Von drops Jericho with a clothesline to start and elbows Christian for the same result. We get some championship miscommunication and Chris gets pummeled in the corner. Christian finally scores with a backbreaker though and the champs take over for the first time.

The pace slows WAY down (as is the Canadian way) but Christian takes too much time yelling at Bubba, allowing D-Von to grab a neckbreaker. Bubba comes in and cleans house but misses the middle rope backsplash. Everything breaks down (as is the tag team way) and D-Von gets two off a small package. Chris rams him into Christian though and a rollup retains the titles clean.

Actually hang on a second as here are Eric Bischoff and Sean Morely (the former Val Venis), who is now Chief of Staff. All four shoulders were on the mat at the same time for the cover so there’s no pin, meaning this match MUST continue. I’m assuming this is the “heel bosses act nice to start before going really evil” segment of the night.

The match continues after a break with Bubba slamming his way out of trouble and making the hot tag off to D-Von. Notice the crowd not being as thrilled, mainly because the good guys just got pinned about as clean as you can get but the match continues on a technicality. 3D gives Bubba the pin on Christian……but Bubba wasn’t legal, so Morely restarts the match again.

The third fall begins and you can hear the fans getting annoyed. Jericho nails D-Von from behind and sleeper drops Bubba for two. That earns him a Flip Flop and Fly with What’s Up making things even worse. Since there haven’t been enough shenanigans in this match, it’s table time but Christian dropkicks it into D-Von’s face. Bubba blocks the Lionsault but Christian hits him with a belt, setting up the Walls to retain the titles for real.

Rating: D+. WAY too much going on here when they could have done a regular match with some extra time or just done a 2/3 falls match, despite the lack of any reason for this to go longer than usual. If nothing else though, it’s nice to have some fresh blood in the title scene and the Dudleys are hardly a stretch for the automatic #1 contendership.

Shawn Michaels is ready to face Van Dam in his first Raw match in five years. He leaves to go talk to Rob for some reason when Christian and Jericho show up with champagne to celebrate. Jericho isn’t happy with Scott Steiner but Christian says “forget about his freaks, peaks and Iron Sheiks”. Chris goes with it and suggests that they hit the town because they need some Vitamin C. Christian: “YEAH! My name starts with a C too!”

They head into the locker room when the Dudleys come up and want to go after the champs again. Bubba says wait, because he has a plan. I think I like this better than cutting to conveniently timed segments where people just happen to be ready to talk when someone else is done but it was still really scripted.

Test vs. Steven Richards

This is fallout from Steven taking a Testicles shirt to the testicles. I think Test is a face now despite doing nothing new other than having the catchphrase. The threat of a big boot sends Steven bailing to the floor but he comes back in with some right hands. We’re already off to a reverse chinlock so at least this is going to be short. Some clotheslines and a full nelson slam give Test two and he hammers away in the corner. A low blow (that the referee should have seen) sets up an X Factor for two, only to have Test Roll the Dice for the pin.

Rating: D. See, he has a catchphrase which a nine year old would find funny so I’m sure the writers are impressed enough to push Test again. Richards got in a lot of offense here, which probably isn’t the best way to push Test, though then again neither is a bunch of testicle jokes. Stacy is gorgeous but that smile is only going to carry the act so far.

Christian and Jericho are in towels after their shower but the Dudleys have stolen their bags. Chase is given and the champs are locked out of the locker room. So how did the Dudleys know that the champs were getting in the shower when they turned the corner two seconds after Christian and Jericho decided to do that? I guess they overheard them but if that’s the case, why didn’t they jump the champs when they were standing there talking?

Test and Stacy are happy with the win and Test goes to take a shower (common theme tonight). As Stacy beams, Victoria jumps her from behind and says she’ll be thinking of Stacy during the match. Instead of her long hair and long legs though, she’ll be thinking of Stacy’s fear. Victoria licks Stacy’s ear and that’s that.

Christopher Nowinski vs. Maven

Before we get going, Chris says this is the last time that anyone can say Maven is better than he is. Maven won Tough Enough because of politics when he mentioned his sick mother and that means it’s on. Nowinski hits him with a big book and Maven is out. No match.

Jericho and Christian are in a search for clothes and find 3 Minute Warning and Rico’s gear. They’re far from impressed (Jericho: “Do you get a free bowl of soup with this outfit?”) but Rico and the Samoans come in to scare them off.

Women’s Title: Trish Stratus vs. Victoria

Trish is challenging and looks very nice in blue. They slug it out to start with Victoria grabbing something like a Thesz press before hitting some awkward kicks to the ribs. A rollup gives Trish two and the kickout sends her outside. She lands hips first, with JR saying is like a stone bouncing across a river. Victoria’s slingshot legdrop gets two as Lawler thinks there’s something in these two’s past before explaining the backstory.

We hit a seated full nelson (that could be a solid finisher) until Trish fights up and gets some rollups for two each. Trish gets sent hard into the steps as this is already starting to drag. Back in and Trish makes another comeback, including a Chick Kick for two. We get an awkward looking shove to send Trish throat first into the ropes but it’s enough to set up the Widow’s Peak to retain the title.

Rating: D. Despite them both looking better than they have in a long time (which covers a lot of ground), the match really did feel disjointed. It was pretty clear that they had no idea how to go from move to move later on in the match, which really makes for some awkward moments. The women were getting better but they weren’t ready for something this long yet, which isn’t a good sign.

Victoria bites Steven Richards’ ear for reasons of general insanity, which he seems to like.

Shawn praises Van Dam’s athleticism but says he’s missing a little something. Rob slaps him and that’s just what the champ was looking for.

Video on Eric Bischoff.

Christian is worried about shrinkage but a shot of the Dudleys in the ring sends the Canadians into the arena. In the ring, the Dudleys are giving away Christian and Jericho’s clothes, including a shirt and jeans. Bubba finds a jar of A** Cream, which has him very confused. Bubba: “WHAT DO YOU DO WITH A** CREAM???” The whole bag of clothes is sent into the crowd but they’re not done yet. Cue Spike to steal the towels and we have unclothed champions.

Hurricane/Jeff Hardy vs. Lance Storm/William Regal

Jeff dives over the top to take out Storm before the bell and the good guys start fast. Some right hands have Regal staggered and it’s off to Hurricane for a high crossbody. The Eye of the Hurricane is broken up so Hurricane has to settle for a chokeslam instead. Regal comes in for the save and starts working on Hurricane’s back with a few knees. Storm adds some forearms, only to get caught with a Shining Wizard. It’s not enough for the hot tag though as Hurricane tries his own half crab. Regal kicks him in the head for the break though and Storm grabs a Sharpshooter for the tap out.

Rating: D+. Nothing to see here but the ending was a nice touch as they went away from the standard formula for a change. You can only do the hot tag into the finish so many times so it was nice to see something get changed up. Regal and Storm aren’t exactly a big upgrade but at least they’re a regular team.

Jeff gets beaten down as well.

We look at Shawn’s last match on Raw from December 1997 against Owen Hart.

Kane vs. Batista

Hang on a second as we have Ric Flair instead, telling Kane that he’s not out of the woods for what he did to Ric last week. Batista comes in to jump Kane from behind and the beatdown is on. We do get a bell though and Batista gets to hammer on Kane in an actual match. Some clotheslines knock Kane around but he comes back with a big boot. The ref gets bumped so there’s no one to count Kane’s powerslam. Ric chairs him in the head and the Batista Bomb gives Dave the fast pin.

We get the official terms of the Big Show trade: Big Show for Ivory, D-Von, Val Venis and Maven. That’s a horrible trade. Anyway Bischoff tells Morely to bring Scott Steiner to Raw. Morely says he has a connection that can make something happen but RNN BREAKING NEWS. Randy talks about everything he’s thankful for, including that good looking nurse at the rehab center.

Goldust vs. Rico

They trade some armdrags to start until Rico gets in a big kick to take over. A lot of stomping allows JR to list off some of Rico’s accomplishments as they seem to be trying to make him into something. Rico grabs an armbar until Goldust makes a short comeback, including the powerslam for two. The Curtain Call gives Goldust the clean pin.

Rating: D. This was more filler but you have to deal with that from time to time. JR mentioned that Booker was healing, which might have something to do with a rash of illness going around the locker room at this point (dehydration due to some issues on a tour of India). If nothing else that would explain some of the odd booking choices tonight, such as this match, which was only going to last so long.

Raw World Title: Shawn Michaels vs. Rob Van Dam

Shawn, in what looks to be the early Sami Zayn collection of tights, is defending. The champ fires off a dropkick to start but gets kicked in the ribs a few times, followed by a clothesline to send him outside. Rob is smart enough to throw him back inside for a slingshot legdrop to the bad back. A monkey flip is countered into something like Snake Eyes and Shawn starts in on the leg.

We hit the Ric Flair playbook with the leg being crushed on the ropes, followed by a Figure Four. Rob makes the ropes so Shawn forearms him into the nipup, only to miss Sweet Chin Music. Rolling Thunder onto Shawn’s back gets two so Shawn comes back with a DDT. Shawn’s top rope elbow gets two more but it’s another backbreaker to cut him off. Rob gets in the Five Star to the back…..and here’s HHH for the DQ.

Rating: C+. This was totally fine but you could tell that Shawn wasn’t able to hit that other gear. The knee vs. back stuff was fine and I’m glad they didn’t go with a clean fall over Rob, who is still recovering from the HHH loss. Speaking of HHH, thank goodness he was back so quickly to save the show. I mean, it had been a whole week without him and now we’re likely going to get him in another title match.

HHH goes after Shawn post match and shrugs off a comeback. A side slam puts Shawn through an open chair to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. I’d assume the rash of illnesses changed a lot of this show but that really doesn’t make the show any more excusable. It’s not a good show with all the lame matches and quick build towards Armageddon, which is already looking like a boring show with another HHH vs. Shawn match on top. This wasn’t the worst show in the world but it was your standard 2002 dullness.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

Looking at one of the most amazing comebacks in wrestling history.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/kbs-review-repaired-hardys/

NXT
Date: April 26, 2017
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators; Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson, Tom Phillips

The British are here tonight as the big featured match will see WWE UK Champion Tyler Bate defending against Jack Gallagher. I like the idea of throwing those guys out there for some filler as it keeps the regular roster fresh and gives us a bit of a treat. That being said, I could go for a bit of a better story than “You’re British, here’s a title shot.” Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Here’s the creepy Nikki Cross to call out Ruby Riot by leaning over and shouting into the microphone being held in the ring announcer’s lap. Riot comes out and the brawl is on with referees barely able to break it up.

We look back at Hideo Itami hitting Bobby Roode with a GTS.

Roode says Itami has to earn a title shot.

Andrade Cien Almas vs. Drew McIntyre

Drew doesn’t waste time by kicking Almas in the face as the announcers accuse Andrade of not focusing on his wrestling enough. Back up and Almas takes him into the corner for the running slap to the face, only to have Drew unload on him with right hands. A top rope forearm to the head makes things even worse and they chop the heck out of each other. Drew gets the better of it and the running boot to the face gives him the pin at 3:54.

Rating: C+. McIntyre is a completely different worker than he was in his first run as he’s wrestling like a 6’5 monster with one heck of a hard finisher. I’m surprise about Almas losing clean this fast but at least they beat the heck out of each other before the finish. Maybe they’re setting up something with the story about him not taking things seriously enough but the quick loss doesn’t bode well.

We get a feature on Roderick Strong, who grew up as an athletic prodigy and had no competition on almost any field. At the same time though, his family was a mess with his dad having substance issues and abusing his mom. One day she shot his dad though and that seemed to take care of some issues.

Strong walks around his mom’s backyard as we hear about how she’s been there for his entire career. Jim Neidhart of all people saw him wrestle as a kid and knew there was potential there. Strong had his own ring in the backyard, which actually looked like a (very crude) wrestling ring instead of something thrown together. More next week, though this already did Strong a lot of good.

Aleister Black vs. Kona Reeves

Kona charges into the corner and gets kicked in the ribs for his efforts. A series of strikes set up a kick to the head, followed by Black Mass for the pin on Reeves at 1:17.

Riot talks about how she goes against the norm. Tonight she’s going to take her first step towards the NXT Women’s Title. Next up, we start a riot.

Almas leaves with a host of good looking women and doesn’t seem to mind his loss.

Ruby Riot vs. Nikki Cross

And never mind as Cross jumps her from behind and the brawl starts on the floor. A suplex onto the ramp has Cross in trouble until the referees try to break it up. Riot dives off the stage to take everyone out and referees literally drag Cross away. This made Riot look like a star and showed Cross’ intensity all over again. The match is going to be a lot of fun and should give the division a shot of adrenaline.

William Regal tells Asuka that there will be a battle royal for the #1 contendership. This doesn’t seem to sit well with the champ.

UK Title: Tyler Bate vs. Jack Gallagher

Bate is defending and has grown a bit of a beard to make him look like he’s in his 20s for a change. Gallagher hand walks out of a headlock to start and Bate can only smile. Back up and Tyler does an interesting walking forward counter to a full nelson. They trade some near falls and a standoff takes us to a break.

Back with Gallagher taking him down with a wristlock and stomping on the hands. Gallagher keeps him on the mat with a variety of armbars and wristlocks, including pinning one arm down and stepping on the other arm to push it all the way down as well (a bit hard to describe but it looks like the shoulder is about to be torn apart).

Tyler finally gets in a few hard punches and a German suplex is good for two. Gallagher’s Jim Breaks Special is reversed into a suplex for two but one heck of a headbutt knocks Bate silly. Another headbutt is good for two but a second Jim Breaks Special is countered, setting up the Tyler Driver 97 to retain the title at 13:31.

Rating: B. This is the kind of different style that makes the UK wrestlers valuable. We had McIntyre wrestling a hard hitting style earlier but this was mostly submission wrestling and arm work before the power finish. It felt like something different and that makes it stand out more, which is the whole point of something like this. Good match as Bate continues to perform beyond his years. They’re also setting up a way to get the title off of him as he keeps getting outperformed but hits his one big move to win every time. That’s going to catch up to him eventually and it’ll make the new champion look that much better.

Overall Rating: B-. It’s a very easy to watch but entirely skippable show this week without any required viewing. The Strong video stands out as NXT is always good about setting something like that up to help you care about a performer. Overall the show felt like it was setting the table for later and there’s nothing wrong with something like that.

Results

Drew McIntyre b. Andrade Cien Almas – Running boot to the face

Aleister Black b. Kona Reeves – Black Mass

Tyler Bate b. Jack Gallagher – Tyler Driver 97

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: April 25, 2017
Location: Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines, Iowa
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

Can we call this a go home show? I mean, Payback is a Raw show but it feels like half of the major matches are built around Smackdown talent, or at least a combination of the two shows. Tonight is a packed show as well with three announced matches plus a Beat the Clock Challenge. Let’s get to it.

Here’s Shinsuke Nakamura (now billed as an artist) to open things up. In your first sign of WWE stupidity/being annoying, he loads up the signature pose and as he pulls the arm back, let’s cut to a crowd shot for a reaction! Before he can say anything, here’s Dolph Ziggler to interrupt.

Ziggler won’t let him talk and says Nakamura is actually named Michael and he’s from Gary, Indiana. We hear a bunch of Jackson Family stories and apparently Nakamura is Michael Jackson’s alter ego. Nakramura takes the mic and insults Ziggler a bit, earning himself a kick to the ribs. That just means the exploder but Ziggler bails from Kinshasa.

Baron Corbin vs. AJ Styles

Kevin Owens is on commentary. AJ’s headlock starts things off and stays on for a good while. Corbin gets bored waiting though and launches him out to the floor for a very early break. Back with Corbin holding a chinlock, followed by a chokebreaker (that’s a good move for him) for two.

AJ slips out of a superplex and scores with the Pele as Owens says Saxton makes him miss Michael Cole. Owens: “Do you know how hard that is?” Styles’ low running forearm gets two but the Calf Crusher is blocked. Instead he loads up the Phenomenal Forearm but has to kick Owens away. Corbin’s powerbomb is countered into a quick sunset flip to give Styles the pin at 10:51.

Rating: C+. I’m not wild on Corbin getting pinned but Styles needed to dispatch him before the title shot. At least it was closer to a fluke win after a fairly dominant performance, which certainly helps keep Corbin looking strong. I’m not sure what he’ll be doing at the pay per view but I hope it’s not a multi-man match.

The post match beatdown is on until Sami Zayn makes the save. That means a Helluva Kick for Corbin but Owens jumps Sami and powerbombs AJ.

Beat the Clock: American Alpha vs. Colons

There are four teams in the competition (another match later) and the winners get a future title shot. Alpha starts fast with the rollup attempts (makes sense) but Gable has to fight out of the wrong corner. The Colons send Gable into the corner though and the double teaming lets the cousins take over.

An armbar wastes some time before Primo grabs a chinlock at the three minute mark. Something like a reverse Koji Clutch keeps Gable in trouble before Primo drops Jordan off the apron. Back up and the powerbomb/Backstabber combination is broken up and a quick Grand Amplitude gives Alpha the pin, setting the time at 5:17.

Rating: C. JBL was right on during this match as he was yelling about the chinlocks and the wasting the time in a match built around winning as fast as possible. Alpha winning is good though I’m really hoping Breezango gets the title shot, if nothing else for the sake of not having to see the Usos vs. Alpha in another match. They’re good but I’ve seen it enough already.

Rusev says he hasn’t shown up yet because he doesn’t like the Smackdown bosses. If he doesn’t get a championship match at Money in the Bank, he’s going back to Bulgaria.

Becky Lynch doesn’t have much of an issue with what Charlotte did last week. The welcoming committee of Natalya/Carmella/Tamina/Ellsworth show up and say Becky is with them or against them.

Randy Orton vs. Erick Rowan

Non-title and No DQ. They head outside to start with Rowan being bounced off the post. The belly to back onto the table keeps Rowan in trouble but he comes right back with a bad looking running dropkick. A few kendo stick shots get two on Orton and it’s already table time. Orton makes his comeback and a few swings of the stick put Rowan through the table.

Back from a break with Rowan in control because tables aren’t the big deal that they’re made out to be. The elevated DDT cuts Rowan off but the RKO is countered. Rowan hits him in the head with the steps but makes the mistake of wedging a chair in the corner. His head goes off of it all of fifteen seconds later and the RKO gives Orton the pin at 12:13.

Rating: B-. So here’s the thing: this was billed as a preview for the House of Horrors match but given that we have no idea what the House of Horrors is, how can we get a preview for it? For all we know, the House of Horrors is a turkey on a pole match. They really need to get this over with already and more on to anything else, which somehow includes Jinder Mahal.

Orton: “I don’t know what a House of Horrors match is but I have a feeling I’ll find out on Sunday.” Orton promises to destroy Wyatt like he’s done a million times but here’s Jinder Mahal to interrupt. He’s the real horror and has more wealth and class than Orton could ever hope to have. Mahal promises to win the title for his people and speaks some Punjabi before getting in a fight. Cue the Bollywood Boyz to slow Orton down, allowing Mahal to get in the cobra clutch slam. Mahal leaves with the title.

Post break Mahal and the Boyz leave in a Hummer limo.

Beat the Clock: Ascension vs. Breezango

The clock is set at 5:17 and Ascension doesn’t get an entrance. Viktor shows some intelligence by hitting a running elbow to Breeze’s jaw for two less than ten seconds in. Konnor comes in for some near falls of his own but Breeze escapes for the hot tag to Fandango. Everything breaks down and Fall of Man is broken up, allowing Breeze to superkick Viktor into the Falcon Arrow for the pin at 2:41. Good call here as Breezango is a popular enough team for a one off title shot.

Video on Wyatt vs. Orton.

Naomi doesn’t want to hear about Charlotte talking about being the best. It’s time to feel the Glow.

Women’s Title: Naomi vs. Charlotte

Charlotte is challenging after defeating Naomi last week. After the Big Match Intros, Charlotte is sent outside but pulls Naomi out for a crash. Back from a break with Naomi caught in a cravate, followed by some stomping in the corner. Naomi makes her comeback with a hurricanrana and a bulldog, followed by a Chick Kick for two.

The Rear View gives Naomi her real near fall before another hurricanrana is countered into a sitout powerbomb. Charlotte’s moonsault hits knees, which JBL calls a turning point. And never mind as here’s the Welcoming Committee (seems to be their official name) to pull Naomi to the floor for the DQ at 10:33.

Rating: C-. This match suffered from a common problem as we were just waiting on the ending. Making Charlotte a face (maybe) is interesting as you can only have her do the entitled heel character for so long. The Welcoming Committee is fine for a way to fill in time until someone new (Asuka) comes up to give Charlotte a real challenge. Not much to see here but it worked well enough.

Charlotte gets beaten down to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This is a show where the wrestling really doesn’t tell the whole story. So many of the stories feel like they’re setting up filler matches, which isn’t a good thing when the pay per view is almost a month away. Payback is really messing things up but at the same time we have to deal with Jinder Mahal as the #1 contender. The worst part is that he’s really not a horrible character (done before but not horrible). The problem is that it’s Jinder Mahal playing it and there’s no reason to believe he’s ready for this level. This week flew by but without anything interesting, it’s not much of a show.

Results

AJ Styles b. Baron Corbin – Sunset flip

American Alpha b. Colons – Grand Amplitude to Epico

Randy Orton b. Erick Rowan – RKO

Breezango b. Ascension – Falcon Arrow to Viktor

Naomi b. Charlotte via DQ when the Welcoming Committee interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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