And that’s the last show for the week.  Talk about it here.

205 Live
Date: March 28, 2017
Location: Richmond Coliseum, Richmond, Virginia
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves

It’s the last show before Wrestlemania XXXIII and while I know I’m a bit behind schedule, it’s always worth looking at everything setting up a major title match. I was really looking forward to Austin Aries vs. Neville for the Cruiserweight Title and it’s time for the final push to the match. Let’s get to it.

Neville doesn’t think much of Aries dancing with New Day on Raw because it’s everyone wanting to see what 205 Live would be like without him. Tonight, he’ll make that happen.

Opening sequence.

Rich Swann vs. Ariya Daivari

The announcers start suggesting that Swann has been sending Alicia Fox the presents, an allegation which Swann certainly hasn’t shied away from. Daivari runs him over a few times but gets knocked to the floor. Swann gets dropped face first onto the announcers’ table and Farsi is shouted.

Back in and Ariya stays on the neck before sending him hard into the corner. The frog splash misses though and Swann grabs a Michinoku Driver for two of his own. Daivari’s running neckbreaker and frog splash get two, only to have Swann kick him in the head. A Phoenix splash (which seems to be the most popular move in the world anymore) ends Daivari at 7:27.

Rating: C. This was fine with Daivari being a bit more watchable than usual. His in-ring work is fine enough but being a black hole of charisma has crippled any long term potential he has. Good enough match here though as Swann is just fun to watch almost no matter what he’s doing.

Fox is talking about Noam Dar’s injury when Swann comes up to ask about why Dar hates him. Another gift is delivered with Fox getting perfume this time. She eats it.

Drew Gulak tries to recruit Mustafa Ali to become a more mat based wrestler instead of doing all the flips. So he’s Drew Gulak For a Better NXT? Ali leaves while he’s talking.

Mustafa Ali vs. Brandon Scott

Ali flips around to start and grabs a hurricanrana before kicking him in the head. Scott gets in a few kicks to the chest and gets two off a hard clothesline. A high crossbody drops Scott again and a kick to the head sets up the inverted 450 for the pin on Scott at 3:24.

Rating: C-. This was fine given how little time it had but the idea of Ali vs. Gulak in a technical vs. high flying feud could be fun, especially if it gives Gulak any kind of a character. Good enough match here with Ali continuing to get to show off as he’s still one of the best surprises of the show so far.

Video on Aries vs. Neville.

Akira Tozawa vs. Brian Kendrick

This is the result of a long feud as Kendrick keeps attacking Tozawa to teach him a variety of lessons. Kendrick gets kicked in the face to send him outside in a hurry, followed by a top rope backsplash for two inside. A quick Captain’s Hook has Tozawa in trouble but he’s out in a hurry. Kendrick bails to the floor and suckers Tozawa into a drop toehold onto the ramp. A suplex gives Brian two and we hit a half nelson of all things.

Kendrick switches up to a reverse chinlock with a few shots to the face like a villain should do. Tozawa fights up and kicks him in the face, only to get caught in Sliced Bread #2 for a near fall. Now the Captain’s Hook goes on full but Tozawa gets out again. They go to the corner where a turnbuckle pad comes off. As you might expect, Tozawa charges straight into the steel a few seconds later, giving Kendrick the pin at 9:53.

Rating: C+. I liked this one again but why in the world do you have Tozawa lose here? It wasn’t clean but you would think he’s going to be the next challenger for the Cruiserweight Title assuming Neville retains. Kendrick is a gatekeeper instead of someone who should be winning a match, making this a rather confusing ending to a solid match.

Kendrick says that was Lesson #9: Anything can be used as a weapon.

Here’s Neville for the second time on a show he wasn’t going to be part of. Neville says he’s at a crossroads after facing many trials over his career. He’s picked himself up every time though, including after his broken ankle last year. Then he became the face of 205 Live and carried the division. Yet the people boo him, even though he’s the reason there’s a Cruiserweight Title match at Wrestlemania. The fans want to cheer for a commentary guy like Aries, even though there is no 205 Live without him. Want to see what it’s like without him? Here’s a black screen.

Cue Aries to say 205 Live is twice as good with him on it but Neville looks miserable all the time. They’ve both had to prove people wrong all their lives. When they both step in this ring, all they want to do is prove that they’re the best in the world and steal the show. Neville punches him in the face and stomps away but takes a microphone to the ear. A quick Last Chancery sends the champ bailing to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was fine enough for the go home show as the lone 205 Live contribution to Wrestlemania weekend is Neville vs. Aries. It wasn’t the most thrilling show in the world or anything like that but it did its job, which is far too often the case for a lot of shows around here.

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

Takeover: Orlando
Date: April 1, 2017
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Attendance: 14,975
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tom Phillips, Percy Watson

It’s time for the big one again as NXT gets to run a major show from its home city. Wrestlemania is in Orlando this year and that means we get a special Takeover right down the road from Full Sail University. The main event is Bobby Roode vs. Shinsuke Nakamura II for the NXT Title in what might be Nakamura’s farewell. Let’s get to it.

I was in the arena for this show so it’s going to be my second look at it.

We open with a HHH voiceover talking about how this is our night to make history. Tonight we show the world that we are NXT and we are home.

The opening video looks at NXT over the years (or at least NXT from Full Sail), which really does include some amazing moments and stars getting their starts. This turns into a video on Roode vs. Nakamura, which is a fight over Roode fighting for himself and Nakamura fighting for the fans. The Women’s Title gets a quick look as well.

Sanity vs. Tye Dillinger/No Way Jose/Roderick Strong/Ruby Riot

Sanity all has black paint around their eyes, making them look like Deadpool. Actually hang on a second as Sanity jumped No Way Jose at Axxess and has put him out of action. We have a replacement though.

Sanity vs. Tye Dillinger/Roderick Strong/Ruby Riot/Kassius Ohno

The good ones hit the ring at a run and the brawl is on in a hurry. The women officially start things off with Cross throwing Riot across the ring by the hair. I still have no idea how that doesn’t make anyone scream. Ruby sends Cross into the corner so it’s off to Wolfe, meaning Ohno has to come in. That earns Wolfe and Young a big right hand each with Kassius easily taking over. At Takeover. Kind of makes sense no?

Young offers a distraction though and Wolfe takes over like the cheater he is. Another big elbow cuts off the heel control though and it’s off to Strong for some speed. Roderick does his running leapfrog (one of my favorites) and backbreakers Wolfe before kicking Dain in the head. I do love how face teams always stay on the apron and let their buddy fight everyone off at once. It’s just not polite otherwise you see. Dain runs him over though as the SHAVE YOUR BACKS chant start up.

Roderick’s comeback is cut off by a running dropkick and it’s off to Young for some choking. A top rope elbow draws Tye in for the save and there go the TEN chants. Eric misses a charge in the corner though and NOW it’s off to Tye with the hot tag. House is cleaned as everything breaks down, including Tye hitting a high crossbody on Wolfe, straight into a dive on Young for a sweet sequence.

Wolfe makes the save so Ohno loads up a dive but Wolfe moves just in time. Not that it matters as Ohno manages to bail by landing hands first on the apron and flipping onto his feet outside. Cross breaks up Ruby’s dive and the closest thing you’ll get to an NXT catfight breaks out.

That leaves Tye vs. Eric with Dillinger cleaning house, including a superkick for a close two on Dain. Onno BLASTS Wolfe with a forearm and Strong Sick Kicks Young to the floor. Roderick vs. Dain looks to give us a rather interesting showdown but the women jump on their backs. Tye loads up the Tyebreaker on Dain but Wolfe makes a save, setting up the Ulster Plantation (One Winged Angel) for the pin on Dillinger at 12:21.

Rating: B. This was a really good choice for an opener and could have been a classic if Tye had gotten the pin and FINALLY won something but instead let’s have him job again. You have to imagine a big showdown with Dillinger facing Young once and for all, but if he loses, I have no idea what’s left for him in NXT. At some point you have to actually win something and Tye hasn’t quite pulled that off yet. Also, Ohno was the only real option here. He’s been featured too much on NXT TV lately and he had to get a spot on here, especially with a great tease of something with Sanity going forward.

Edge and Beth Phoenix are here.

Andrade Cien Almas vs. Aleister Black

No real story here other than it’s Black’s debut and he needed an opponent. Black’s entrance (which I couldn’t see from the upper deck) is straight out of Nosferatu as he rises up from what looks like a casket and onto the stage. Black slingshots over the ropes and lands in a sitting meditation style position, which is almost guaranteed to become a signature pose.

They trade armbars and headscissor escapes to start until Black misses a swinging kick, leaving Almas to pose at him. Back up and Black kicks him to the floor for a dive, only to moonsault back into the mediation pose. Back in and Almas takes him into the corner for a stomping and one heck of a slap. A missile dropkick gets two for Almas and it’s time to start in on the arm.

Nigel isn’t sure on this as Black mainly uses kicks but figures it might just be overconfidence. Almost immediately thereafter, Black starts firing off the kicks to send Almas outside for a huge middle rope moonsault. Back in and Almas grabs a cross armbreaker over the ropes, followed by something like the Rings of Saturn (I’m glad that’s becoming more popular).

Black ducks the running knees in the corner and they trade kicks to the head for a double knockdown. A moonsault kick to Black’s head sets up a snap German suplex for two so Black starts snapping off kicks. Black Mass (a spinning kick to the head) knocks Almas silly at 9:35.

Rating: B-. This was fine without much of a story other than Almas getting cocky, as is his nature. I wasn’t wild on him at first but this was a solid debut performance. The meditation pose is going to be a winner for him, especially once we get to know him a little bit better. I also like the Black Mass as sometimes you just need to kick someone in the head.

Also of note, I wasn’t really able to pay much attention to the finish live as the fans in section 220 decided they were more important than the rest of the show. This included declaring their section’s greatness, chanting TWENTY after each near fall (“1-2-TWENTY!” Get it?) and calling the other sections around them S-A-W-F-T. You can imagine how this went and you can hear the other sections telling them to shut up during the ending.

We recap the Tag Team Title match, which is almost guaranteed to be the best match on the card. DIY and the Revival tore the house down for the better part of six months but the Authors of Pain took the belts from DIY, setting up a three way feud. This meant a triple threat elimination tag, which for once made perfect sense.

Tag Team Titles: Revival vs. DIY vs. Authors of Pain

The Authors are defending but before the match, William Regal presents some snazzy new title belts (the Women and NXT Titles will get new belts as well), possibly due to the Women’s Title being involved in Paige’s sex tape. Revival and DIY stare each other down before they both turn to face the Authors, drawing the first major pop of many. Rezar is sent into the barricade so DIY grabs a table, even though this shouldn’t be No DQ (I believe a DQ would count as an elimination).

Akam goes into the steps and the four challengers stare each other down, setting up the showdown that the fans really wanted to see. Nigel is beside himself as the champs are recovering while the other four fight each other. We settle down to a regular match until Akam tags himself in for a double clothesline.

Ciampa’s high crossbody is caught but he kicks Rezar in the head, only to have Revival back down the steps instead of taking a tag. That’s smart in this kind of a match, which shouldn’t be surprising given how intelligent those two come off most of the time. With the referee distracted, Dawson sneaks in for a DDT on Akam to give Ciampa two. Dawson comes in legally but takes a shot to the ribs. This time it’s DIY dropping to the floor because they’re just that smart.

Gargano tags himself in and gets two off the slingshot spear before kicking Dawson in the head. Johnny adds a slingshot DDT and the fans are WAY into this, just as you would expect them to be. The champs catch a dive so Ciampa tries a suicide dive of his own, only to have the Authors THROW GARGANO THROUGH THE AIR to break it up. Things slow down with Akam working on Gargano’s ribs, including throwing him up into a torture rack. Johnny finally sends Rezar into an uppercut from Dawson, allowing the hot tag off to Ciampa.

It’s time for a series of strikes into a pair of German suplexes on Rezar, followed by the running knee for two. With Rezar reeling, Gargano tries a powerbomb from the apron through the table but can’t put him down. Ciampa’s help isn’t enough so Revival punches Rezar in the jaw, setting up the double powerbomb through the table for the big crash and an even bigger cheer as the giant is in trouble. That leaves Akam on his own…and all four surround him.

Since he’s a monster though, he actually drops all of them on his own because screw it. A chop block brings Akam down though and Dawson slaps on the reverse Figure Four. Gargano thinks about breaking it up but adds his version of the Crossface for the double submission. The partners grab Rezar so he shoves them into Akam and company for the save, drawing a loud round of booing. A series of strikes drop Rezar and it’s Dawson/Gargano hitting DIY’s double strike. Naturally this means Ciampa and Wilder give Akam a Shatter Machine, sending the fans even further into orbit with the champs going outside.

The fight is on and Ellering cheers both teams on in a perfectly logical (yet still amusing) moment. Gargano and Wilder hit stereo dives on the champs and Ciampa goes up top, only to have Dawson SUPERPLEX HIM ONT THE BIG PILE OF PEOPLE, putting all six down at once. Dawson goes after Gargano (Nigel: “NO! This is a mistake!” It turns out that he’s right as the Authors get back in for the Last Chapter and the elimination on Ciampa at 18:54. You could feel the energy going out of the crowd at that point and it never recovered for the rest of the match (or show for that matter).

The fans chant DELETE (because they’re such big fans that they forgot the Hardys were 40 minutes away at Ring of Honor) but have to settle for Revival, who are now the most over team in the world. A German suplex/top rope elbow gets two on Rezar but Akam kicks Dawson in the face. Almost stereo powerbombs earn the champs a NO ONE LIKES YOU chant as this is getting brutal. Rezar spears Wilder into the barricade while Akam sends Dawson into the corner. The Super Collider retains the titles at 23:43.

Rating: A-. Give this a more popular and less deflating ending and it’s the Match of the Year so far. Those first seventeen minutes or so were as smart and well thought out that I’ve seen in years but as soon as the Authors turned into Super Cena, everything went flying out the window. In theory this means DIY and Revival are heading to the main roster (this is being written after Revival debuted on Raw) and if that’s the case, this is the logical move. If DIY sticks around though, I have no idea what they’re thinking.

The NXT fans want to see DIY vs. Revival in their awesome matches and the Authors are as far removed from that as they could possibly be (not saying they’re bad, but that they’re not what the fans want). It makes them look unbeatable though and that means the team that takes them down will be even more awesome than anyone could imagine. It’s a great match but the ending really brings it back to earth.

We recap the Women’s Title match. Asuka is sitting by a pool and says the division rises and sets with her. She’s said she’ll keep the title forever but Ember Moon is undefeated as well. Asuka might be a more complete wrestler than Moon but she has the biggest weapon in NXT (close enough) in the Eclipse. That’s the whole idea: if Ember can hit that one big move, nothing Asuka can do matters. The video goes on a good bit longer than it needs to, which is a pretty common problem in WWE.

Women’s Title: Ember Moon vs. Asuka

Ember is challenging and has some of the best theme music in NXT at the moment. No special entrance for Asuka but I believe she has new gear. After the Big Match Intros, Regal presents the new title which looks like a cross between a UFC belt and the old X-Division Title. I really liked the first one but come on: it had to change eventually.

They lock up and go to the mat to start with neither being able to get any kind of an advantage. Stereo dropkicks go nowhere and it’s time for a standoff. Asuka offers a handshake but pulls her hand back instead, showing quite a bit of confidence (fair enough). Shoulders go nowhere as they’re doing a great job of portraying both of them as equal. The flying hip attack only sees Ember nip up….and make a not funny face in her way of saying bring it. Yeah that looked dumb.

Another hip attack sends Ember outside and it’s time to really take over with some spinning elbows to the head. A third hip attack drops Ember and Asuka fires off kicks to the chest. The Asuka Lock is broken up and Ember blasts her in the jaw to send the champ outside. They’re doing a really good job here of having Ember hang with Asuka until one big shot cuts her off all over again.

Case in point, Ember kicks her in the head but takes a Shining Wizard for two. The Asuka Lock goes on (To very little reaction for some reason. Even live this didn’t feel important.) with Asuka on Ember’s back, allowing Ember to drop backwards for the break. A good looking superkick drops Asuka and even more kicks have her reeling. Ember’s springboard is broken up though and a German suplex gives Asuka two.

Asuka loses a slugout and gets capture suplexed for two more. Ember loads up the Eclipse and throws Asuka off the top….only to have Asuka shove the referee into the ropes for the heel turn. Somehow that’s not a DQ (I need to read that WWE Book of Rules) and Asuka kicks her in the head to retain at 12:12.

Rating: B. Commentary really helped this one a lot as Nigel was selling the heck out of the idea that Asuka had met her match. That’s the story here and it worked really well: Asuka couldn’t beat Ember using her standard stuff and was in real danger from the Eclipse so she cheated to win instead. I’m fine with Ember losing as she never got to hit the Eclipse (so there’s your rematch) and you have Ruby Riot, Kimber Lee and Nikki Cross ready to challenge too.

In your big surprise of the night, DREW MCINTYRE is in the crowd. That’s the best news I could hear as McIntyre was all over Wrestlemania weekend and I’ve wondered why he isn’t WWE Champion like, now for example. I’m very happy with this and it couldn’t have been much of a better choice.

We recap Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bobby Roode. As mentioned earlier, it’s basically Roode being out for himself and Nakamura being out for the fans.

NXT Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bobby Roode

Nakamura is challenging and does his entrance behind a translucent screen where you can see his shadow. That feels very Michael Jackson-esque for some reason. The fans of course sing Nakamura’s song (despite it not having any words) and it’s yet another awesome entrance. Granted they also sing Roode’s song as Roode spins around on a pedestal, accompanied by two pianos (TAKE THAT REBY!). Regal brings out the new belt, which looks almost identical to the Women’s Title.

We’re ready to go, but first this reason why I can’t stand Twitter. Phillips: “These fans are on their feet and they’re ready for this hashtag NXT Championship match!” Roode goes straight for the knees as the fans like both these guys. A headlock doesn’t get the champ very far so Nakamura lays him on the ropes for the head on Roode’s chest spot. Roode laughs off the bring it but gets caught up in the rapid fire strikes to bring him down.

Nakamura drops a knee and sends him into the corner for Good Vibrations. Roode gets in a dropkick and knocks Shinsuke off the apron and into the barricade for a crash. Nakamura seems to have hurt his shoulder but Roode opts to just stomp him down in the corner. Being the cocky jerk that he is, Roode stops for the GLORIOUS pose but still manages to chop Nakamura in the corner.

We hit the nerve hold for a long stretch (softening up the neck for the DDT) before Nakamura gets in a kick to the head for a breather. It’s time to start in with the knees, including one in the corner and one on the apron. Roode comes right back with a heck of a clothesline and a chop block to start in on the knee again. The knee is wrapped around the post and we hit a bad looking Figure Four. Nakamura turns it over to, sending Roode straight to the ropes so he can get right back to the knee.

Another hold is countered into a cross armbreaker but Roode gets to the ropes again. Nakamura fires off strikes in the corner but knees the buckle by mistake. That earns Roode a series of kicks from the good leg so he grabs a Backstabber to put both guys down. They slug it out with Nakamura kneeing his way out of a suplex and dropping another knee for two. Kinshasa sends Roode bailing to the floor but he kicks the ropes to hit Nakamura low.

The Glorious DDT connects for two and again Nigel is right there to sell the heck out of it. Roode goes to get the bell but gets kicked in the head, followed by the exploder. Kinshasa is countered into one heck of a spinebuster for two and Nakamura is done. Back up and Roode drives him into the corner for a tornado DDT into the Glorious DDT to retain at 28:14.

Rating: B+. This was….long. The first match had far better drama with the story around the knee while this was just more long than anything else. That’s not to say it’s a bad match but I did like the first one earlier. The key here though is Roode winning clean without ever really doing anything all that complicated to counter Nakamura’s insane offense. Roode is a very basic wrestler but he does everything so proficiently that it’s hard to beat him. It’s a very good match and pretty clearly Nakamura’s swan song, but not as good as the predecessor.

After the show ended, Nakamura got the big sendoff with his music playing and taking a bow to all parts of the arena. See you Tuesday.

Overall Rating: A-. This show has one problem: it’s going to be compared to Takeover: Dallas. Last year’s show was one of the best of all time while this was just a really good one. There’s absolutely nothing bad on here but the lack of title changes hurt things. This show felt like a big goodbye instead of NXT showcasing itself, which is one of the problems that a developmental territory is going to have. It’s an outstanding show though and definitely worth watching, only being held back by what happened last year.

Results

Sanity b. Tye Dillinger/Kassius Ohno/Roderick Strong/Ruby Riot – Ulster Plantation to Dillinger

Aleister Black b. Andrade Cien Almas – Black Mass

Authors of Pain b. The Revival and DIY – Last Chapter to Dawson

Asuka b. Ember Moon – Kick to the head

Bobby Roode b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Glorious DDT

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

Ring of Honor
Date: March 29, 2017
Location: Sam’s Town Live, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Kevin Kelly

I think we’re up to the pay per view now, only a mere three weeks after it took place. The big story is Christopher Daniels FINALLY winning that elusive World Title, which was the best possible option since Adam Cole is reportedly on his way out. That’s the case with far too many people and it’s a bad sign for the company. Let’s get to it.

Christopher Daniels talks about how he couldn’t lose on this one night and then he wouldn’t let it happen. So we’re FINALLY to the Anniversary Show, just as it’s the go home show for the next pay per view. Got it.

Opening sequence.

Here’s the Addiction to open things up with Daniels looking very happy holding that title. We even have APPLETINIS! Daniels immediately hits the bragging by talking about the brilliant plan, which can overcome a younger, faster and arguably more talented opponent. Kazarian couldn’t be happier for his buddy and just happens to be the new #1 contender to the TV Title. Cue Dalton Castle as we take a break.

Back with Daniels introducing Castle to the appletini, which seems to blow his mind. Dalton would love one of his own but there’s only one glass. No worries of course though as a single snap of the fingers brings out the Boys with a large glass for Castle. A toast allows Dalton to congratulate the new champion, but that brings some changes. This includes a title defense against Castle at Supercard of Honor and Castle wouldn’t wish that on anyone.

Cue the Bullet Club with Adam Cole not wanting to hear about the fairytale ending because he remembers it as the title being stolen. As for Castle, who in the world thinks he’s the best option for the title? Kazarian throws out a challenge for a six man later tonight and the match is made.

Marty Scurll cuts a promo about facing anyone when Kenny King comes up to challenge him for a title match. It seems to be all set.

Tag Team Titles: Briscoe Brothers vs. Hardys

Matt and Jeff are defending in a match with fifteen minutes’ build. Sweet goodness I can’t stand this show’s taping schedule. The champs have a very Broken style entrance without actually doing any of the Broken trademarks. Mark busts out some Redneck Kung Fu to confuse Jeff early on (you don’t hear that too often) but everything breaks down as the Hardys take over.

Chops in the corner give us some OBSOLETE/DELETE chants but Poetry in Motion is easily countered. Jay nails a suicide dive to set up the Cactus Elbow from the apron and it’s off to a break. Back with Jeff getting stomped down and then rear chinlocked for good measure. Jeff fights up and scores with a double Whisper in the Wind though, setting up the hot tag for the loud DELETE chants.

Matt’s bulldog is good for two on Mark and it’s back to Jeff for a chinlock. Back from another break with Mark and Jeff hitting a double clothesline to set up the double tag. Matt bites Jay in the corner to bust him open a bit. The neckbreaker gets two on Matt and the champs take back to back superplexes.

The Froggy Bow is only good for two on Matt though as the fans don’t seem sure who to cheer for. Mark comes in to slug away at Matt and the Doomsday Device gets yet another near fall. Back up and Jay is sent outside for a big crash, leaving Mark to take the Twist of Fate and Swanton…..for two? Dang I bought that as the finish, along with Mark rolling Matt up for two. Jeff makes a blind tag though and Matt backslides Mark down so Jeff can cradle him to retain at 17:44.

Rating: B+. That’s the best ROH match I’ve seen in a very long time and, while I’d love to see it actually get a proper build, there’s only so much you can do with the Hardys’ limited schedule. As a bonus, it’s pretty amazing to see Matt come back to ROH just a few years after he was Big Money Matt as this completely different character. He really is someone capable of re-inventing himself like this and it’s great stuff a lot of the time.

Post match the Young Bucks come out to challenge the Hardys to a ladder match at Supercard of Honor XI. The champs quickly agree.

Adam Page/Young Bucks vs. Addiction/Dalton Castle

This is joined in progress in a huge brawl and Daniels taking a double superkick. Nick adds a huge springboard flip dive to put everyone down, followed by another superkick. Of course that means the heels get to pose but the Boys break up the Rise of the Terminator dive. For your comedy, they even take the Bucks’ place next to Cole, who somehow doesn’t notice. The Bucks save another dive though and beat up the Boys (it’s not that hard) as Cole is STILL kneeling in the ring.

What does that say about the good guys on the floor Somehow they’re unable to be ready for the dives, which were loaded up about a minute before they even launched and Addiction had no chance of avoiding them. That’s a stretch even for wrestling. Back in with Kazarian getting beaten down in the corner before his partners come in, only to be triple suplexed. We take a break and come back with Kazarian blocking a double superkick but taking the slingshot X Factor.

Kazarian grabs a cutter though and it’s off to Daniels so house can be cleaned. Cole sneaks in with a superkick to drop Daniels but since he’s not a Buck, the champ can actually get the better of him. Castle (I forgot he was in this match) comes in for some suplexes but can’t hit the Bang-a-Rang. He can however catch Matt’s springboard in a German suplex. Nick comes back in with a Swanton on Castle but Daniels gets in Angel’s Wings on Matt.

Cole superkick him down though and everyone is out. The Canadian Destroyer nails Kazarian but it’s time for a Superkick Party. The Bucks kick Cole by mistake and Castle no sells a double superkick (that’s a new one and while I can’t stand the Bucks, that’s a bit of a stretch), setting up the Bang a Rang to put Cole away at 13:48.

Rating: B-. This was fun, though also served as the weekly Young Bucks party. At least the new champ was on the winning team, but he could have gotten the pin over Cole. You can see the problems with the Bullet Club coming through which is likely the way to set Cole’s exit from the company.

Castle and Daniels grab the title to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. I know this isn’t going to last long term but at least we had a great show here. This was ALL about the wrestling with the Daniels promo as a bonus. This also helped set up the two Supercard of Honor main events, which certainly need the help with the show so close. Really good and entertaining show, mainly because they got back to the regular stuff instead of all the filler episodes.

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

Since I’m ridiculously backed up due to being in Orlando, I needed something to fill in the space.  Here’s a fresh version of last year’s post-Wrestlemania Raw to bridge the gap a bit.

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 4, 2016
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Byron Saxton, John Bradshaw Layfield

We’ll wrap up the redos with this one as I was in the building for the post-Wrestlemania XXXII Raw as well. After the previous night’s exhausting Wrestlemania, it was off to the smark show of the year which kind of serves as the company’s season premiere. There aren’t a ton of loose ends to tie up after last night but Roman Reigns is the new World Champion. Let’s get to it.

The opening recap looks at…..oh come on you can figure this one out. If nothing else that My House song is insanely catchy. Don’t let the shortness of the video fool you: the show sucked.

Cole and the announcers let us know that this show’s audience is “non-traditional” but THEY’RE HAVING FUN! Which is why so many chants are called stupid! One chant that was stupid: a group of fans chanting about TRAVEL PACKAGES before the show started.

Here’s Vince McMahon (in case you thought it was Vince Russo) to open things up. The fans sing No Chance along with the music, which Vince says was the same chance that Shane had last night against Undertaker. As of this morning, there is no more lockbox over his head (it doesn’t make a difference as we still don’t know what was in there) and no one controls him.

Last night he watched his son take a beating but only one moment really got to him: watching Shane dive off that Cell to prove a point. After a Shane-O-Mac chant, Vince tells us to enjoy the show….and here’s Shane. With Vince looking concerned, Shane calls himself the only man in the family. Shane thanks the fans and says he’ll never forget last night. Naturally that means a YOU STILL GOT IT chant because the fans only have a limited set of choices.

Shane goes to leave but Vince says no one upstages him. Let the idiocy begin. Vince has often thought about how crazy it would be if Shane ran Monday Night Raw (I guess he forgot Shane running the show, albeit with Stephanie, back in 2008). The fans tell Vince to LET HIM RUN IT so the boss actually gives in, making EVERYTHING WITH THE UNDERTAKER COMPLETELY WORTHLESS.

I’ve heard that Shane was supposed to win until Undertaker nixed the idea, which would line up with what we’re seeing here. This was stupid back then and looking back on it, this really was one of the dumbest things they’ve done in a long time. At least wait a few weeks and come up with something better than “eh screw the stipulations”. That’s some Russo level nonsense and it just so dumb.

Here’s New Day for a title defense and a chat as the place just EXPLODES for them. New Day merchandise was by far and away the most popular during the weekend so it makes sense to have them here. Things didn’t go well last night but Kofi got to dance with Shawn Michaels but Xavier (who now has a smaller trombone for some reason) didn’t have so much luck. He took a Stunner from Steve Austin and, upon further review of the tape, Woods admits it was entirely his fault.

On a more positive note, they have the final piece of Wrestlemania BootyO’s, which Woods holds up before singing Lion King’s Circle of Life. The place sings along with him (as they should, though me being a diehard Disney fan has nothing to do with this opinion) before we hit all the catchphrases.

Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. League of Nations

New Day is defending against Sheamus and Wade Barrett. The champs easily clean house to start (as you should against losers like the League) and Kofi is tossed onto Sheamus with an accompaniment on trombone. Sheamus eventually shoves Kofi off the top so Woods runs over with the cereal for comfort. Barrett gets in a good kick to the ribs and we take a break with Kofi fighting out of a chinlock and the fans doing the Wave.

Even Sheamus joins in on it so Woods grabs the mic and says if you do the Wave, you like Sheamus. And so much for the Wave. This was the second time Woods had to do something like that as he used the same method to cut off a WE WANT ROCKSTEADY chant during the break. The fans call themselves awesome as Kofi drops Barrett and gets over for the hot tag to Big E. That means a bunch of belly to belly suplexes and the Warrior Splash for no cover. The League is knocked off the apron and a quick Midnight Hour retains the titles at 8:44.

Rating: C-. It’s kind of amazing to think that New Day had EIGHT MORE MONTHS with the titles after holding them since Summerslam. In another note, Sheamus would be one of the people to take them off New Day and with another international partner. Not that there’s any connection but I don’t have anything else to talk about here.

Post match Sheamus says he’s sick of losing and there’s something wrong. Fans: “HOW YOU DOIN?” With an Enzo Amore chant breaking out, Sheamus Brogue Kicks Barrett off the team and out of the company. The whole team would be done in less than a month. Of course ignore the whole complaints about losing when they just won at Wrestlemania. Again, it’s almost like that result was to just screw with the fans, which is the worst kind of booking.

The three members stand alone….and we’ve got Wyatts. An easy beatdown ensues as the fans sing about having the Whole World in His Hands. This would be the start of Bray’s quickly canceled (due to injury) face turn. Why that turn has never been tried again isn’t clear, but the fans are DYING to cheer for Bray and have been since he debuted. When you perform that well, it’s hard to argue against them.

Vince leaves because he knows this is going to be a disaster.

Summer Rae vs. Sasha Banks

Before the match, Summer says her team lost but at least she didn’t fail like Sasha. The place again goes nuts for Sasha’s entrance, who says she’s Sasha and Summer isn’t. Summer gets in an early shot to set up a chinlock, only to have Sasha fight up with running knees in the corner. The Bank Statment wraps Rae up at 1:40.

Apollo Crews vs. Tyler Breeze

This is Crews’ main roster debut and the NXT chants are out in full force. Crews speeds things up to start but eats a hard superkick for two. Not that it matters as Crews hits the gorilla press into the standing moonsault, followed by a Toss Powerbomb for the pin at 1:57. Just a squash, but Crews is a REALLY weird callup as he doesn’t really have a character. He’s insanely athletic and has a great look but there’s no character to him and he doesn’t really have anything for people to care about. That’s not his fault of course as he just needed more development.

Video of Roman Reigns and Charlotte on the Today Show.

Here’s Roman Reigns and MY GOODNESS the booing is louder than it was at Wrestlemania. The announcers are right there to try and write it off as a weird crowd thing but JBL gets even worse by saying Roman FINALLY made it to the top of the mountain. You know, the three time World Champion. Not that it matters though as Reigns gets in what might be the worst line of the year: “I’m not a good guy. I’m not a bad guy. I’m THE guy.” Reigns gives an open challenge for the title and here’s Chris Jericho.

Chris gets straight to the point by demanding that he get the title shot after defeating the internet darling AJ Styles. Speaking of Styles, he’s up next on the interruption list, only to have Kevin Owens limp out before AJ can speak. Cue Sami Zayn to fight with Owens, leaving AJ to be sent outside. A big spear drops Jericho and Reigns smiles in the boos. Of note, Sami immediately grabbed his shoulder and RAN to the back under the cover of darkness. This went nowhere but was rather scary live.

We look back at Shane being put in charge of the show.

Shane makes AJ vs. Jericho vs. Owens vs. Zayn for the #1 contendership. Reigns approves.

The announcers recap the show and tell us about last night’s Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.

Baron Corbin vs. Dolph Ziggler

This is Corbin’s main roster singles debut after winning last night’s battle royal. Before the match, Corbin says the trophy is the only thing you need to know about him. Fair enough actually and the way you use a battle royal like the Andre version. Ziggler tries to duck away to start until Corbin sends him to the apron. One heck of a boot puts Dolph on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Ziggler fighting out of a nerve hold as the fans have dueling chants about……a beach ball. Yeah a fan brought one in and it was being batted around, completely taking the focus off of the match. You know, because that’s what matters when a brand new talent is brought up and making their Raw debut. I’m sure most of them will be chanting for NXT all night long too.

Now it’s a YOU SOLD OUT chant because a security guard took the ball. Ziggler makes his comeback with a Stinger Splash and the running DDT, only to charge into a massive Deep Six. They head outside with Corbin booting him into the crowd for the double countout at 11:03.

Rating: D. Not only did the beach ball chants waste a lot of time but THIS is how you use a Raw debut? I get that they’re setting up a match later on but you can’t have Corbin beat up some goof and do this on Smackdown? Ziggler getting beaten up is fine but let Corbin get a pinfall first you know?

Corbin beats Ziggler up even more and hits End of Days on the floor.

Stills of Lesnar vs. Ambrose from last night.

Here’s Zack Ryder for a chat, which Lillian introduces as a match. That’s what would happen in a bit but the producers EXPLODED on Lillian (off camera of course) with Garcia yelling right back. On the broadcast, Cole wrote it off as Lillian being excited and thrown off by Ryder shocking the world, which is all it needs to be. Just say she assumed it was a title match but got ahead of herself. Why does that require yelling at her?

Anyway, Ryder tells the amazing story of meeting Razor Ramon as a kid and getting to hold Razor’s Intercontinental Title. Last night they took another picture with Razor holding HIS Intercontinental Title. That’s just awesome and was one of my favorite parts of the whole show. On top of that Ryder thanks his father, who is sitting in the front row (and is in better shape than 90% of the roster). Cue Miz to call Ryder a one hit wonder who got lucky last night. Miz yells about how that was supposed to be his night with his wife watching from the crowd. Ryder: “Sucks to be you bro.” Miz issues a challenge for a title match and we’re on.

Intercontinental Title: Zack Ryder vs. The Miz

Ryder is defending. Miz can only get half of the Reality Check before Ryder gets in a dropkick. A middle rope dropkick is good for two and Ryder one ups himself with a middle rope hurricanrana. Back from a break with Ryder being sent to the floor for a big crash before Miz unloads with left hands. Ryder fights back with a middle rope dropkick (again) but gets caught with a short DDT for two.

Zack counters a suplex into a neckbreaker and the Elbro is good for two. The Broski Boot isn’t allowed to connect of course so Miz drops him face first on the barricade, right in front of Papa Ryder. Oh yeah you know where this is going. Trash is talked and Zack’s dad pushes him down. It’s not a DQ for some reason but here’s Maryse coming over the barricade to slap dad in the face. The distraction lets the Skull Crushing Finale give Miz the title at 10:58.

Rating: C+. Better match than I was expecting with the obvious ending. Maryse coming back turned out to be the greatest thing that could have happened to Miz, who really needed a boost just like this. They really are perfect for the roles and the fact that they’re really married makes it even better. That was pretty much it for Ryder as a singles guy and really….it’s not that surprising.

A lot of gloating ensues.

Owens says Sami won’t leave him alone but he’s on to bigger and better things. Like destroying the Roman Empire and becoming the new World Champion. Sami isn’t costing him the WWE Title because tonight, the road to KO Mania II begins.

The Vaudevillains are coming. On Smackdown!

Here’s the women’s division with Lita standing next to the new Women’s Title. She wants to do this right, which means Charlotte needs to come out here to be presented with her title. The fans immediately cut her off with HEY! WE WANT SOME BAYLEY but Cole says Bayley isn’t here. You know, in case you had a reason to be interested in this segment. Charlotte actually thanks the fans for getting her here but the fans keep singing for Bayley.

It turns into a WOMEN’S WRESTLING chant which Charlotte actually seems to enjoy. Charlotte starts talking about how great her dad is and how much he helped as this turns into the heel speech you would expect. She mocks a lot of the women for being here so long while she’s dominated in less than a year. Sasha and Becky walk out (Charlotte: “I didn’t bank on you leaving!” with the rest of the ladies following.

Natalya is the only one left and goes into a speech about how Charlotte needs to learn respect. It was Natalya who gave Charlotte a great match at Roadblock and she has the heart of a champion. Charlotte laughs it off because the title proves that she has the better family. The fight is on and Sharpshootering ensues.

So at this point we had about ten women in the ring at once and somehow, WWE decided that we had enough for two divisions. On top of that though, NATALYA, the least interesting woman on the roster, gets the first shot at the new champ? That was a huge blow for the division and I think everyone knew it. The segment was good other than that but sweet goodness that was a bad ending. Oh and finally: can we PLEASE stop with the “my family is better than yours” stuff? It puts too much focus on the old guys, which defeats the purpose of the whole thing.

AJ says he’s here to be World Champion.

The Shining Stars are coming and somehow they’re still here a year later.

Usos vs. Dudley Boyz

Tables match. It’s a huge brawl to start and in theory there are no DQ’s here, as there certainly shouldn’t be given how violent the match is supposed to be. JBL flat out says there’s no strategy here, which means there’s really not much of a point for commentary either. Or a referee. Or the match in general really.

Bubba takes over on Jey and it’s What’s Up, only to have Bubba say SCREW YOU instead of ordering D-Von around again. Double dives put the Dudleyz up against the announcers’ table and we take a break. Back with Bubba getting superkicked onto a table as a NAKAMURA chant breaks out. I know it’s the big show of the year for this nonsense but it was old five minutes into the show.

Double powerbombs are countered into a double superkick (you can guess who did what), followed by double clotheslines off the barricade. The double Superfly Splashes through the tables miss and the bell rings, which is a bit premature. Bubba throws Jey through a table for the real win at 8:57.

Rating: D-. This was really boring and I have no idea why this even needed to happen. The Usos beat them clean at Wrestlemania so now they lose a gimmick match the next night on Raw? Nothing to see here and the match went on FAR longer than it really needed to. This could have been done on any other show and it really held things back here.

Sami Zayn is ready to prove everyone wrong and get to the main event when Owens comes in and powerbombs him through a table.

The Dudleyz are still out here (after yelling at fans while the lights were down for Sami’s interview) but they’re interrupted by the debuting Enzo Amore and Big Cass to a MEGA pop. We hit the usual catchphrases with the fans eating them up like a big bowl of……oh if only there was a WWE themed food eaten from a bowl. Enzo thinks the Dudleyz are jealous because they’re just ugly. He’s even willing to punch D-Von’s lazy eye straight. More insults ensue but no violence follows. Cass’ spelling lesson takes us out.

More Wrestlemania stills.

Zack Ryder gets his rematch on Smackdown.

Dr. Phil is guest host next week. The place went SILENT when that was announced, as it should.

AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho vs. ???

One fall to a finish. Sami is officially out due to injury and is replaced by…….the returning Cesaro! That’s your big surprise for the end of the show and I’ve certainly heard far worse ideas. He’s a popular guy so let him come out there and give the fans something to cheer about. If nothing else we get the debut of the tearaway suit. It’s a brawl to start (duh) with the Canadians being sent outside, leaving Style vs. Cesaro for a pop inducing showdown.

A big dropkick staggers Cesaro but he grabs a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker to put Styles down and the show on a commercial. Back with a KO MANIA chant as Jericho works over Styles in the ring. Chris spends a bit too much time posing though and Owens has to save him from the Cesaro Swing. The greatest friendship that ever lived hadn’t begun yet though so I’m not sure why Kevin would do that.

Since it’s a four way match, we hit the Tower of Doom with Cesaro getting to do the powerbomb, meaning we HIT THAT CROWD SHOT BABY! Yeah they were even doing it back then. Swiss Death drops AJ for a close two and Owens gives Jericho the package piledriver slam for the same. AJ is back up for a springboard 450 for two more on Chris as Cesaro makes the save.

It’s time for the Uppercut Train and you know the fans are getting behind that thing. Even Jericho comes back in to make it a three stop train. The Swing makes its return as Jericho goes spinning until Owens makes the save. Kevin’s Pop Up Powerbomb gets two on Styles but Jericho gives Owens a Codebreaker for a near fall of his own.

The fans cheer for Cesaro as he and Jericho slug it out (you know you’ve made it if a smark crowd is cheering for you over Jericho) but Chris grabs the Walls. Cesaro fights out and reverses into a Sharpshooter but it’s AJ’s turn for the save via the Phenomenal Forearm. Another Codebreaker gets another two on Styles but he comes back with his Strike Rush into the Styles Clash for the pin on Jericho at 16:44.

Rating: B+. Yeah this is still great with the near falls and a lot of doubt about who is actually going to pull off the win. Styles getting the title shot was a great way to bring him back to the forefront after the interesting loss at Wrestlemania. Cesaro not being involved in the fall was a good idea as you don’t want to kill off his momentum right off the bat. Owens vs. Sami will be fine too so this was a very well booked match.

Styles can’t believe it and celebrates to end the show. This went on for a good while to really end the night.

Overall Rating: C. This really doesn’t hold up all that well with the lack of drama for the debuts and surprises. It also reinforces the issues with the crowd, who are just never going to shut up no matter what they do. There’s good stuff on here, such as Shane not coming back out for a long speech (keep the people wanting him) and the main event, but stuff like that tables match and a lot of the short matches don’t work too well. It’s still watchable but the big reason to care about it is gone, which makes it a louder show with an obnoxious crowd that has to be saved by a great main event. Still though, it was fun which is what matters.

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

Back from the show with some quick notes.

1. This wasn’t the most interesting show. The big reveal of Balor at the end was hardly a surprise, though that’s just going to happen every now and then. Other than that we had Reigns’ promo (which only kind of felt like a heel turn as WWE still won’t go full speed ahead with anything he does), the Revival (again not really a surprise) and Angle as GM (not really a surprise, though Teddy Long’s R-Truth style cameo was hilarious).

2. Reigns reached a new level of booing tonight. I’ve never seen such loathing.

3. The THANK YOU TAKER opening was rather touching.

4. As is always the case on here, the wrestling meant nothing, though it’s not supposed to.

5. Uh….oh yeah there’s the Draft (or whatever it is), which is going to change everything. That kind of makes tonight’s show worthless, which isn’t the best possible idea. Make the announced next week and do the Draft in two weeks, or after Payback. It’s not like it’s doing you much good by announcing it tonight.

6. Overall, the show was entertaining, but it’s kind of collapsing under its own reputation. If you don’t have 134 different stories and angles and surprises, it feels underwhelming. It was good, though there’s only so much you can do when your surprises aren’t really surprises.

7. Oh and the beach balls. SCREW OFF WITH THOSE THINGS ALREADY! During the Neville match, there were probably close to 25 of them being batted around in the span of five minutes. It’s really, REALLY distracting for someone trying to watch the match (much like the Wave in the main event) but then again this crowd, which claims to be a bunch of wrestling fans, would rather entertain themselves because apparently WWE doesn’t do it for them.

8. Could anyone make out what they were chanting during Sheamus/Cesaro’s match? I never could get it.

Discuss it here.  I’ll have a quick live report up when I get back.  Also I’ve started on Takeover and it should be up tomorrow if I’m lucky.

Main Event
Date: March 30, 2017
Location: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

It’s Wrestlemania week and there’s a good chance that you’ll never know it based on watching this show. If I had to guess, we’ll be seeing some nothing matches and a bunch of build towards the pay per view. In other words, it’s going to be Monday Night Raw all over again. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Alicia Fox vs. Dana Brooke

Dana is freshly face. Feeling out process to start with Fox running her over, only to get slammed for two. For some reason this makes the announcers suggest that Dana is cheating, even though she certainly didn’t. Fox’s northern lights suplex gets two and we’re off to the chinlock. That goes nowhere so Fox misses a boot in the corner and gets caught in a Samoan Driver for the pin at 4:09.

Rating: D+. Yeah fine. Dana is pretty much the same character as a heel or a face, which isn’t the best sign in the world. This was really just having Brooke shrug off Fox’s offense and hit her finish, though she has a good smile and the entrance works well enough. It’s clear that neither of these two are going near the title anytime soon and this didn’t seem to do much to help them.

From Raw.

Here are Rollins and HHH for the contract signing. HHH doesn’t get in yet because he has to tell Seth that the match is off if there’s violence before the match. Seth has to sit down and listen to what he has to give up or there’s no match. HHH explains the idea all over again and then blames the fans for putting Seth in jeopardy.

The boss doesn’t understand why people hate success so much. How dare HHH drive a nice car and live in a nice house? You have one life to live and there’s no point in holding back. HHH finally gets to a logical point by saying Seth doesn’t want to miss Wrestlemania twice in a row but if he walks in to Wrestlemania, he’s not walking out.

Seth says that’s the same nonsense he bought into three years ago but he’s not doing it now. He didn’t mind wrestling in front of 100 people for a hot dog and a handshake in the Philadelphia National Guard Armory because he loves this business. Seth loves this and it’s more than just a match at Wrestlemania. Rollins signs and the beating is on with HHH going after the knee. HHH loads up the crutch but gets caught by an enziguri and backdropped over the top.

Also from Raw.

Here’s Reigns for his big talk about Undertaker. He was in this building two years ago when he won the Royal Rumble and then went on to main event two straight Wrestlemanias. Roman, sounding rather heelish, doesn’t care what the people say and doesn’t care what Undertaker thinks: this is his building and this is his yard. The gong strikes and Undertaker is on screen in the graveyard.

We see him digging the grave, which is in a special part of the cemetery. At Wrestlemania, the Roman Empire will crumble and the ultimate thrill ride will be Reigns’ Last Ride. Reigns should live each day like its his last because at Wrestlemania, he will…….and there go the lights because Undertaker is in the ring. As he was saying, Reigns will rest in peace. The lights go dim again and Reigns isn’t phased.

Lince Dorado/Gran Metalik/Mustafa Ali vs. Ariya Daivari/Tony Nese/Drew Gulak

Nese runs Metalik over to start but Metalik starts using the ropes, including walking across them into a springboard armdrag. Ali comes in and gets sent hard to the floor as we take a break. Back with Gulak getting two off a hard clothesline before grabbing a one arm camel clutch. Ali pops back up with the rolling neckbreaker and there’s the hot tag to Dorado. A shooting star gets two on Nese and everything breaks down with Metalik getting in a big dive. Nese adds the inverted 450 for the pin on Gulak at 9:05.

Rating: C-. This was every run of the mill cruiserweight six man you’ve ever seen. Metalik had some good dives in there but there was nothing else of note in the whole thing. They really do just throw these people on TV and hope for the best. The match isn’t bad by any stretch but it’s completely uninteresting.

We’ll wrap it with this.

Here are Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar for the big closing segment. Lesnar is the extremist who is going to derail Goldberg’s ultimate thrill ride. The Universal Title is what matters most around here because it’s the one (Heyman: “There’s a number you’re familiar with at Wrestlemania.”) thing that matters more than anything else. Lesnar craves and lusts after that title but more than that he wants to destroy Goldberg.

While Goldberg may be the man, Lesnar is the Beast that will chew him up and spit him out at Wrestlemania. Now we need a reason to get people to buy the show (“Or buy a ticket off a secondary market because Wrestlemania is sold out. Thanks for the house Brock!”) so here it is: Goldberg is going to Suplex City! Lesnar doesn’t fear the spear because Goldberg can’t survive the F5. Here’s Goldberg to say the people are here to see us fight, meaning it’s a spear to Lesnar in the aisle. Lesnar is down on the floor as Goldberg poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. Complete waste of forty five minutes here with recaps of segments that weren’t great in the first place and two nothing matches. Main Event is a show that has to put in some strong effort to get above being a nothing show and they certainly didn’t accomplish that here. Bad show and one of the weakest since I’ve been watching.

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

In addition to the Rev Pro show on Friday night, WrestleCon also put on a Supershow in the same room (and with a lot of the same talent). This was the definition of a supershow with a little bit of everything from comedy to violence to dueling chants. To say this was a lot more energetic than most shows is an understatement.

The show was scheduled to start at 8:30 but since Rev Pro went fairly late it wound up starting at about 8:50. There were also well over 1000 people in one room sot he place was BOILING. Prices for a bottle of water (as in a regular one) at the bar: SIX DOLLARS. Realizing this was insane, I went down the street to Walgreens and bought a liter sized bottle for $1.79. At intermission I went and got two more, with all three not combining for the cost of one. I get the idea of making money but those prices would drive customers away.

1. David Starr/Caleb Kenley/Trevor Lee vs. Michael Elgin/ACH/Mascarito Dorado

That would be El Torito at the end. To give you an idea of what we were dealing with on this card, ACH was introduced as “Mr. I Used This Booking To Pay My Bills.” The match was under Lucha rules and it was very clear that this was going to be a very Un-PG show. Dorado did a bunch of speedy stuff, causing Lee to shout the following at his partners: “WHAT IN THE F******* F*** WAS THAT???” Later, when Dorado was in a chinlock, Lee shouted at Kenley to “MAKE THAT MIDGET TAP!”

Dorado got beaten up for a good while (including taking a triple crotch shot to the head) until Elgin got in to clean house with the power. ACH didn’t really do much here and really could have been anyone in the spot. Dorado eventually ended Starr with a moonsault in about 12:00. This was a lot of fun and a great opener. B-.

2. Low Ki vs. Shane Strickland

Let’s make this clear: I’ve never liked Low Ki. I find him to be very one dimensional and repetitive beyond believe. He was a surprise here though and the roof came off when he appeared in the ring. They kicked each other a lot and Low Ki hit a top rope double stomp to the apron for a huge crash and the pin at 13:04. This was pretty repetitive and just kept going. D+.

3. Impact Wrestling World Title: Bobby Lashley vs. Jeff Cobb

Now this was interesting before the bell as Lashley was introduced to some country music and didn’t appear. It wasn’t clear what happened but an “F*** THAT OWL” chant started up. I couldn’t see the entrance but I saw Lashley walking around ringside with no entrance. As luck would have it, I got to ask him what happened at WrestleCon and it turned out they didn’t have his planned music and it’s a VERY serious rule to never come out to someone else’s music. He didn’t come out because they didn’t play the right song but he knew he was going to be the huge heel so he just came through the crowd instead.

The match was a good power brawl with Lashley not taking Cobb seriously to start and eventually getting thrown around. The more I watch of Lashley, the more I appreciate him. He’s just a machine out there and looks like a tank while also being a really nice guy outside the ring. Lashley realized he had to put some effort into things so he eventually got in the Dominator and a spear to retain at about 10:45. B-.

4. Flip Gordon/Sammy Guevera vs. Angleico/Jack Evans

Angelico is my favorite from Lucha Underground so this was a treat. I didn’t know who Gordon and Guevera were at first but they both put in a very solid performance and got my attention more than once. Sammy looks a lot like Justin Bieber so Evans made a bunch of jokes when he got the tag. Evans did a bunch of insane flips and eventually Angelico’s running Razor’s Edge buckle bomb got the pin at about 13:00. I could very easily see Gordon and Guevera as a team on a bigger stage as they had a nice, clean cut look but played good heels.

5. Team Ricochet (Ricochet/Jason Cade/Sami Calihan/AR Fox/Desmond Xavier) vs. Team Will Ospreay (Ospreay/Marty Scurll/Lio Rush/Drew Galloway/Ryan Smile)

This was a ten man tag, which is becoming one of the signature matches of the WrestleCon Supershow. Let me put this very simply: I’ve been watching wrestling for a long time. Like, a very long time. I’ve been to more shows than I can count, including three Wrestlemanias. I have never, in my entire career watching wrestling, had more fun watching a wrestling match in person.

The captains were chosen due to a great match Ospreay and Ricochet had last year in Japan which was called choreographed nonsense. The solution? Give then four partners each (which they say they were allowed to hand pick) and TWENTY TWO MINUTES to do as much choreographed stuff as they could. This included a series of about ten straight cutters, quadruple big boots, a quintuple suplex and a dance off that has to be seen to be believed. As luck would have it, I had a camera on me and filmed the second half of said dance off. Everyone danced but I only got the last few. The one that matters is included though.

This was twenty two minutes of having fun with professional wrestling. It had been a very long day and I was starting to check out on the show due to a bit of a boring card. This match snapped me back to life and I had one of the best experiences I’ve ever had watching. Honestly I don’t even remember how the match ended but that wasn’t the point. Find this match online (the full show is available for $5 at Highspots’ website) and have a good time being entertained by it. Easy A+ and the most fun I had all weekend.

Intermission time, which again ran long as the wrestlers were running their merch tables. It also meant time for me to meet some more wrestlers, including Angelico, Lio Rush, Flip Gordon, Sammy Guevera (very nice guy), Desmond Xavier and Moose. As I was coming back from Walgreens for water, I saw Marty Jannetty in the lobby and WOW he was out of it. I shook his hand and he started walking around without letting go while hitting on a woman. As I was heading out of the arena, I also saw Donovan Dijak watching the show as a fan.

6. DDT Ironman Heavymetalweight Title: WrestleCon Rumble

So…..explaining this title……uh……basically it’s a parody of the WWF Hardcore Title where the belt can be won by ANYTHING, including a baseball bat, a ladder, a cameraman, various sex dolls, a child who had the ability to chokeslam anyone and Candace Larae, whose title win took place in a dream. This was a Royal Rumble with one minute intervals but the title could change hands via pinfall, submission or an elimination. In other words, the title can change hands during the match but the winner would be champion no matter what. Instead of going through this step by step, here are the entrants and anythign of note.

1. Joey Ryan (defending champion)

2. Colt Cabana

Here’s what I’m dealing with in this match:

Bell rings.

Ryan to Cabana: “GRAB MY D***!”

Fans: “GRAB HIS D***! GRAB HIS D***!”

3. Kikutaro (Japanese comedy character)

4. Underground Luchador

This was a masked guy in a Lucha Underground t-shirt. It was obviously Matt Striker and after a rollup to pin Ryan (which wasn’t an elimination), he was unmasked as such.

5. Manscout Jake Manning (He reads and beats people up at the same time)

6. George South

7. Suicide (Never unmasked, apparently Caleb Konley)

8. Mr. Hughes (Down probably 100lbs from his mainstream days)

9. Zane Riley (Mr. 305 Live)

10. 2 Cold Scorpio (One of my favorites so this was a treat)

11. Billy Gunn (Easily the biggest pop of the match)

12. Moose (Who had a staredown with Gunn for a bizarre visual)

13. Swoggle

14. Shane Douglas

15. Kevin Thorn

16. Shannon Moore

17. Hurricane (With a bad limp)

18. Abyss (House was cleaned)

19. Gangrel (That music is still SWEET)

20. Marty Jannetty

The final five were Jannetty, Moose, Gangrel, Swoggle and Ryan. I don’t often say this, but Jannetty was an embarrassment. I know he’s on a horrible ankle but the fans were booing him out of the building, which says a lot given how fun this match really was. Thankfully he was gone soon thereafter but it was bad while it lasted. Ryan’s “special” suplex eliminated Moose and Swoggle tossed him a few seconds later for the win and the title at about 25:00. Much like the Gimmick Battle Royal in 2001, this was all about having people come to the ring one more time and not the result.

Ryan immediately rolled Swoggle up to get the title back (it’s defended 24/7 like the Hardcore Title) and then made the mistake of saying he would defend against anyone anytime. Then, in something I’ve always wanted to see and never thought I’d get to: Enter Sandman.

The Sandman came out with a full entrance, complete with the entire Metallica song, cigarettes and beer being poured into fans’ mouths. Sandman offered Ryan a beer but caned him instead for the pin and the title. I’ve always wanted to see a Sandman entrance and it certainly didn’t disappoint.

7. Johnny Mundo vs. Brian Cage

This was a TLC match, though in this case it was won by pinfall or submission. Mundo had Taya Valkyrie with him (showing off very well in basically a red swimsuit) and Cage had his real life girlfriend (which I didn’t know) Melissa Santos, who did his entrance ala Lucha Underground. It’s very odd to see Santos out of her ring announcer outfits but jeans and a Lucha Underground shirt worked very well. She’s a very beautiful woman.

I was somewhat disappointed by this one as they really just hit each other with weapons for a bit. Taya tried to interfere and got superbombed through a table while Santos actually got physical (I don’t think she ever has in Lucha Underground) and took a very protected spear through another table. That was enough for Cage as he busted out a Steiner Screwdriver onto a chair for the easy pin. I forgot to start the timer but I’d guess around 12-13 minutes. There really wasn’t a need to call this a TLC match as it was basically just a glorified street fight. C-, only because of the gimmick announced.

8. Hardys vs. Rey Fenix/Pentagon Dark

The Hardys weren’t playing their Broken characters here…..but yeah they were the Broken Hardys. Matt kept doing DELETE and shouted WONDERFUL a few times. Interestingly enough, CERO MIEDO was getting louder reactions than DELETE. This was actually pretty short with the Hardys never seeming to be in much danger. Fenix and Pentagon (collectively the Lucha Brothers and the reigning PWG Tag Team Champions) had some sweet double team moves though and I’m sure they’d be fun to watch more. A Twist of Fate into a double Swanton ended Pentagon at about 7:00. D+. Too short to be very good.

Post match Matt put over the Lucha Brothers (who are real life brothers as well) as the future of tag team wrestling, along with the Young Bucks and the Briscoes. Matt basically said he didn’t know how much longer he and Jeff could do this (I’m writing this after they won the Raw Tag Team Titles) but he doesn’t want Meek-Ma-Han to destroy tag wrestling (oh the irony). However, if any of McMahon’s teams try to take over, Jeff said they would fade away and classify themselves as obsolete. Hands were shaken in a sign of respect to end the show.

Overall, this was a total blast as they basically took everyone they could find not in WWE or ROH and threw together a wrestling card. Not everything can be Wrestlemania, but it doesn’t need to be. This show made me realize that sometimes you need to forget about the quality and the storytelling and such and just have fun watching people do wrestling moves to each other. I mean, this kind of stuff isn’t likely to work for the masses (WAY too many kicks to the head and silly flips) but it’s the junk food of wrestling: entertaining at the time and you remember it well. Really entertaining show here and I’ll be back for the 2018 edition. B+.

So I’m back (after spending 40 minutes in a parking lot (meaning grass) waiting on traffic to move) and my goodness what a night. This show, while not as great as Wrestlemania XXX, was quite a rollercoaster of emotions. While I’ll have the full review up asap (give me a few days thanks to bad wifi and a 14 hour drive home Wednesday), here are a few quick thoughts.

1. That set was amazing and looked incredible in the dark. Possibly the best looking one they’ve ever done.

2. The mixed tag went exactly as I expected with Cena just popping up at the end and winning with his usual.

3. The proposal, while cheesy, was fast and fine enough.

4. The Hardys coming out made me jump to my feet, along with about 75,000 other people.

5. AJ vs. Shane was shockingly good.

6. What was the point of Nia Jax being added? Like at all.

7. Stephanie’s table bump woke up the crowd.

8. I can’t stand Stephanie but SWEET GOODNESS she looked incredible tonight.

9. I want to punch the finish of Bray vs. Orton in the face, kick it in the testicles and feed it to a ravenous bull.

10. Goldberg vs. Lesnar was better than I was expecting.

11. Mickie James and Alexa Bliss look very good in trunks.

12. Naomi’s entrance is one of the trippiest things you’ll ever see live.

13. New Day was worthless tonight and I forgot they were a thing for hours at a time.

14. The ending with Undertaker and the post-show stuff with him leaving almost got to me a bit.

15. The upper deck at Wrestlemania is a REALLY BAD PLACE for someone who doesn’t like loud noises or heights.

More later of course. Ask away if there’s anything you want to know about live.