205 Live – February 21, 2017: The Supplemental Show
205 Live Date: February 21, 2017
Location: Citizens Business Bank Arena, Ontario, California
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Corey Graves, Austin Aries
We’re less than two weeks away from Fastlane and that means it’s time for some of the more basic build towards the Cruiserweight Title match. There are three matches announced for tonight, all of which suggest that this is going to be a much more wrestling heavy show than one built around angles. Let’s get to it.
We open with a long recap of last night’s contract signing.
Opening sequence.
The announcers chat for a bit.
Akira Tozawa vs. Brian Kendrick
This almost took place on Raw but Kendrick laid him out instead. Tozawa goes off on him with forearms and a running kick to the chest. Some mounted right hands have Kendrick in even more trouble and Tozawa shouts that he doesn’t need him. Tozawa chokes with the boot in the corner as this is completely one sided so far.
Kendrick finally manages to post him to take over and it’s time to work on Tozawa’s neck. A big boot sets up the Captain’s Hook but Tozawa gets a hand between the arms for the block. Tozawa sends him outside for a suicide dive and the crowd is getting into this. With nothing else working, Kendrick sends him into the apron and ties Tozawa’s foot into the cables underneath the ring for the countout at 5:42.
Rating: C+. This was a way to set up something else down the line and there’s nothing wrong with that. Tozawa has the potential to be a big star in the division and I can actually get behind the idea of Kendrick as a gatekeeper. He isn’t exactly great as a top heel but this role is fitting him a bit better. I’m still not sure why he carries that flag but whatever.
Kendrick says that was another lesson for Tozawa. More lessons are coming.
Noam Dar didn’t like Rich Swann dedicating a match to Alicia Foooooox last week so tonight, Dar is going to do the same thing. Fox is a bit under the weather this week but worry not because she would NEVER leave him.
Noam Dar vs. Mustafa Ali
They trade wristlocks to start until Ali backflips away and dropkicks him to the floor. That means a big flip dive (Aries: “MAMA BELLOMO!”) with Ali jumping over the referee for a nice touch. Dar kicks him in the leg on the way back in though and things slow down again. Back in and Dar starts working on the arm for a change, only to eat a dropkick to the face.
Dar uppercuts him into the corner but gets caught in a tornado DDT to put both guys down. It’s Ali up first though and he takes Dar over to the corner, only to have Noam get to the apron before the reverse 450 can launch. That’s enough to have Ali go head first into the post, setting up a running knee to the head for the pin at 7:34.
Rating: C. Dar continues to be fine in the ring but he’s still missing a certain fire that would carry him up towards the top of the division. I’m curious to see who Fox could leave him for (it’s pretty clear that’s where they’re going) and where Dar can go from there so it’s far from hopeless. Ali should be higher up on the food chain than he is too but for some reason he’s cooled off a lot in recent weeks.
Austin Aries introduces a video on…himself, as he’s getting back in the ring soon. That would have been better as a surprise attack but Neville vs. Aries for the title at Wrestlemania would have me drooling.
Neville wasn’t pleased with the attack during the contract signing and has his sights focused on Gallagher.
Jack calls tonight’s match a preview for Fastlane.
Jack Gallagher vs. Tony Nese
The idea here is that Nese is the most comparable person to Neville on the roster. Nese throws him down to start and we hit the pose. That earns him a takedown into a SICK looking armbar with Gallagher tweaking the mustache and making sure his hair stays straight. Back up (thankfully without a torn pectoral), Nese elbows him in the face and tosses Jack over the top for a breather. One heck of a superkick drops Gallagher again and we hit a bodyscissors.
A legdrop gets two but also seems to start Jack’s comeback. Gallagher gets two off a crossbody and a sunset flip before headbutting the heck out of Nese. It’s too early for the running dropkick but Jack puts him in the Tree of Woe. That’s fine with Nese though as he pulls himself up into a super German suplex. Nese goes up top again, allowing Gallagher to catch him in a top rope belly to back superplex. The running corner dropkick puts Nese away at 10:05.
Rating: C+. This was a very simple idea and it worked as well as it was going to be able to. Gallagher was in trouble but used his technique and footwork (which he talked about earlier) to come back and win, which is what they’ll be aiming for at Fastlane. Then again I don’t buy Neville as being in any real danger but at least they’re getting the story right.
Overall Rating: C+. They basically took a week off for a filler show here but it was still entertaining enough to work. Gallagher is being built up as the best possible challenger for a nothing pay per view and they’re already setting up a few things for the future, including Aries’ in ring return. You didn’t need to see this show but it did exactly what it was supposed to do.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:
Please give us any stories you might have of any of them. They’re always worth it.
NXT – February 22, 2017: The Wrestling Version
NXT Date: February 22, 2017
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness
We’re getting closer and closer to Orlando as we’re….well we’re still in Orlando but it’s not the big show yet. Tonight’s big deal is a triple threat match for the #1 contendership to the Women’ Title as Asuka is in need of some more competition. It’s hard to say what else we’ve got coming up around here and that’s a good thing as you could be in for a good surprise. Let’s get to it.
In Memory of George Steele.
Quick video on the triple threat.
Opening sequence.
Liv Morgan vs. Peyton Royce vs. Ember Moon
#1 contenders match and Morgan is in Space Jam Tune Squad inspired gear. Moon gets sent to the floor to start and Morgan does a Matrix move to avoid the a spinning kick. The two of them head outside and Ember hits a dive over the top to take Morgan down. We take an early break and come back with Morgan taking Peyton’s long legged choke in the corner.
Peyton sends her to the apron and puts on something like a full nelson with her legs before letting it go to put Ember back on the floor. Morgan comes back with an ankle scissors out of the corner for one but can’t follow up because it’s just an ankle scissors. The real comeback starts with a kick in the corner and a bulldog, finally drawing Ember in for the save.
A headscissors puts Moon right back outside though and it’s time for a superplex. Peyton isn’t fast enough though as Ember sneaks in to make it a Tower of Doom and all three are down. Moon loads up the Eclipse but Billie Kay takes it instead of Morgan, leaving Peyton to knee Ember in the face. A fisherman’s suplex to Morgan is good for the pin and the title shot at 11:54.
Rating: C+. That’s really the only option as Morgan has already been destroyed by Asuka and I’d assume they’re keeping Moon for a big showdown. The idea here was to keep Moon on the floor because otherwise it would have been her dominating the other two and slipping on a banana peel to lose in the end. Royce winning is the right call though I can’t imagine that title shot comes before Takeover.
Video on Pete Dunne and Mark Andrews.
Kassius Ohno is coming back.
Shinsuke Nakamura is healing up.
Mark Andrews vs. Pete Dunne
Rematch from the tournament where Dunne beat Andrews. Dunne goes straight for the fingers to start and then rips at the nose like a true heel. Andrews pops back up and sends him to the floor for a moonsault armdrag to take over. A second attempt doesn’t work though and Dunne forearms him in the jaw, followed by stomping the fingers onto the steps.
We take a break and come back with Andrews flipping Dunne over and grabbing a springboard hurricanrana. Dunne is ready for the shooting star though and forearms Andrews out of the air. The X Plex gets two but Andrews gets out of the Bitter End. A reverse hurricanrana of all things puts Dunne down again. Another Bitter End is reversed into a small package for two and the X Plex is countered into the Stundog Millionaire. Dunne gets the knees up on the shooting star though and the Bitter End wraps Andrews up at 13:52.
Rating: B+. This was very good stuff and the wrestling was enough to overcome the lack of a story coming in. In theory this sets up Dunne as the first real challenger to Bate but it’s not clear if anyone from outside the UK can challenge for the UK Title. You can also add Andrews to the list of people TNA screwed up horribly.
Kay and Royce are ready to take the Women’s Title back to Australia.
Patrick Clark is in action next week.
Tye Dillinger is ready for Sanity, no matter what they throw at him.
No Way Jose vs. Bobby Roode
Non-title and Roode’s entrance is reaching Undertaker lengths. Roode takes him to the mat to start and slaps the afro a bit. Back up and it’s dance time with a clothesline freaking Roode out a bit. The big spinebuster plants Jose again though and we take a break. Back with Roode striking the pose and grabbing a chinlock. Jose makes his comeback and cleans house with chops and a cobra clutch slam. The big right hand puts Roode on the floor but he comes back in and hits the Glorious DDT for the pin at 10:39.
Rating: C+. This was the kind of match that Roode needed. Jose is going to be fine with a loss to the champ and Roode gets a win over someone with some credibility. That being said, the credibility isn’t going to last all that long if he never wins a match anytime soon. Good enough though and a third solid match on a good show.
Post match Roode goes after the knee until Kassius Ohno makes a big return for the save. Roode asks who Ohno is so Kassius talks about how he’s been around the world. Now Ohno wants what Roode has, so Bobby is willing to put the title on the line right now. Roode gets in a cheap shot and starts in on the knee, only to get knocked out to the floor for his efforts. Ohno poses to end the show. Ohno got a strong reaction (not quite Nakamura but still a star level reception) and that’s a good thing as he’s likely going to be in the title scene very soon.
Overall Rating: A-. This was the pure wrestling show with almost no storyline development but three strong matches in the span of an hour. Sometimes you just need a long show with a lot of good wrestling and that’s what took place here. I had a good time with this and it went by fast, especially with the big angle to end the show. NXT needed a show like this and it worked very well.
Results
Peyton Royce b. Ember Moon and Liv Morgan – Fisherman’s suplex to Morgan
Pete Dunne b. Mark Andrews – Bitter End
Bobby Roode b. No Way Jose – Glorious DDT
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:
Monday Night Raw – September 23, 2002: The Bad Times Are Here
Monday Night Raw Date: September 23, 2002
Location: Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, California
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler
It’s the night after Unforgiven and the big story on the Raw side is Ric Flair joining forces with HHH to form….well to form nothing at the moment but that’s the only noteworthy thing that happened last night. I’m worried about what we’ll be getting going forward but that’s so often the case around here. Let’s get to it.
Women’s Title: Trish Stratus vs. Molly Holly vs. Victoria
Trish is defending after winning the title last night. Victoria goes after the champ before Molly even gets to the ring and the fight is on in a hurry. As Lawler asks if Trish is the hottest Women’s Champion ever, the challengers start double teaming Trish as you might expect them to do. That earns them a double clothesline and some signature stuff but Molly lifts her up for a toss out to the floor (and one heck of a bump). Back in and Molly avoids Victoria’s moonsault, setting up a collision to knock Molly into Trish’s rollup to retain the title.
Rating: D+. The match was nothing to see (save for that nasty crash to the floor) but this was quick enough to not overstay its welcome. The women just aren’t good enough at this point to work a long match so it’s a good idea to keep things short here. Victoria looked a lot more aggressive here and that’s the best thing possible for Trish and the title.
Booker T. and Goldust show some of the roster clips of last night with Eric Bischoff getting humiliated. Goldust: “I haven’t seen anything that bad since Chris Jericho’s last Fozzy concert.” As a bonus, Goldust has a picture of Bischoff with Rikishi’s thong replacing the face. Rico: “That’s disgusting! I’M TELLING ERIC!”
Bischoff welcomes an unnamed face to the Raw side when Rico comes in. Eric wants to know where Rico was last night but it was Bischoff who sent them out on the town. Anyway Rico tells him what Booker and Goldust were up to and Eric is ticked.
After a break, here’s a ticked off Bischoff in the arena. Bischoff isn’t cool with the fans booing him but more importantly, Vince McMahon has issued a new decree: there’s a freeze on all contracts and no one gets to jump between shows unless there is an official trade. However he made a few last minute deals before the deadline with details coming later.
For now though, Booker needs to come out here RIGHT NOW. Bischoff wants an explanation but Booker calls him a skippy hippie. Booker keeps making jokes about last night and says Bischoff’s breath is heinous like a fat man’s anus. Cue 3 Minute Warning and Rico for the beatdown with Goldust’s save going nowhere.
Post break, Rico offers to face Booker tonight and Chris Jericho comes up to demand a shot at Goldust for the Fozzy insult. Eric agrees but makes it an Intercontinental Title shot. That’s a very face move for a heel boss.
Jeff Hardy vs. Big Show
Jeff goes right after him to start and actually hits something like a suicide dive. That’s not what you do to a giant though and he tosses Jeff over the top so we can have the opening bell. Back in and Jeff dropkicks him in the knee and hits the Swanton across Show’s back for what is likely his only near fall. Show just blasts him with the overhand chop to bust open Jeff’s shirt. That’s enough for Show as he plants Jeff with the chokeslam for the pin.
Rating: D. I’m so glad we’re getting the renewed Big Show push because I just don’t want to imagine a WWE without it. Allegedly Hardy was rather, ahem, unable to perform last week so this might have been punishment as a result. I’d rather have that instead of “comedy” but Big Show might not be the best choice to push.
We look back at Tommy Dreamer beating up Christopher Nowinski two weeks back.
Nowinski is in a classroom and wants to fight dreamer. Post break Dreamer shows up and gets caned down. Dreamer puts him through the ceiling and the beating just keeps going because we NEED hardcore stuff around here without actually having hardcore matches.
Randy Orton vs. Steven Richards
Here’s one of the talent jumps but it’s not clear if he was the mystery man earlier. Orton hits his quick dropkick as the crowd is just silent for this. Richards slows things down and gets two off a side slam. The rather slow pace continues until Orton slips out of a neckbreaker and grabs a belly to back suplex.
Commentary would suggest that the company wants Orton to be the next Rocky Maivia but it’s not quite working. How can Orton be considered a blue chipper without a Jheri Curl? Orton’s backbreaker and powerslam get two each, only to walk into the Stevie Kick for two. That means a freak out session and choking from Richards, only to eat the high crossbody to give Orton the pin. Lawler: “THIS KID IS PHENOMENAL!” Just….no Jerry.
Rating: D-. Above all else this was incredibly boring. Orton has no character at this point and there’s only so much you’re going to be able to do in a match against a low level nothing like Richards. It’s a really boring match and that doesn’t make Orton seem like the bright star that the announcers are pushing him to be.
The Union Underground performs Across the Nation (Raw’s theme) while some Divas dance. Lillian looks like she’s just enjoying the song, Terri looks like she has no idea what she’s doing (might not be her kind of music) and Jackie is having a great time while barely staying in her top. Stacy is miles ahead of all of them as she looks amazing and clearly has done this kind of dancing for a long time.
Here’s Flair for the big explanation. Last week, HHH yelled at him and said Flair was pathetic. HHH was right and it’s because Flair was too busy listening to the fans. When he was a kid, HHH wanted to be Ric Flair (or Hulk Hogan if you listen to the story from back in April) and now Flair is going to try to pull that off.
If HHH is willing, Flair is going to teach him how to get to another level. Flair’s payment is very simple: he gets to be by the champ’s side and spend the twilight of his career on top where he belongs. Rob Van Dam tries to interfere but HHH beats him down from behind. The double team is on until Bubba Ray Dudley makes the save.
Two notes here: first of all, they kept this short but covered the point. We know why Flair did it and we know what he gets out of it. Simple yet effective, as promos often need to be.
Second, this is a great example of how important it is to have the right character in the right role. I can accept the idea that HHH is a huge Flair fan and wants to be just like him. There’s no specific reason but it’s something I could accept at face value. For an example of it going bad, look back at AJ Styles doing the same thing in 2010. I can imagine AJ being a Flair fan but I absolutely can’t believe one of the most natural faces ever being a Nature Boy clone. You need to have the right kind of character for any given role and it works very well here, which is why the angle should work as well as it’s going to.
Post break Bubba and Van Dam say this is the people’s show and demand a tag match tonight. Bischoff comes up to say it’s his show but allows the match anyway.
Intercontinental Title: Chris Jericho vs. Goldust
Jericho is defending and these two are somehow still active fifteen years later. Goldust gets in a quick hiptoss and catapult to send him into the buckle. The champ comes right back with a bulldog and cranks on the neck as we hear about how big a band Fozzy really is. With that going nowhere, Jericho hits an extended trash talk sequence. It’s enough for Goldust to fight back with something like a Boss Man Slam/chokeslam but the Curtain Call is broken up. Goldust will settle for a powerslam but the referee breaks up Shattered Dreams. Jericho gets in the enziguri and the Walls retain the title.
Rating: C. Not bad here, as you might expect. I don’t think anyone was going to buy Goldust as a full fledged threat to win the title but you’re going to get a completely watchable match out of him. I’m still not entirely sure why Jericho has the title again but he’s far from the worst choice.
Tag Team Titles: Un-Americans vs. Kane/???
Kane is challenging along with his partner…..the Hurricane? Again it’s not clear if he was the one who was in Bischoff’s office or not but it doesn’t really matter. An early Blockbuster puts Christian down but the rest of the team jumps Hurricane on the floor. Kane does his best angry stare for the save and it’s Christian getting in a few stomps of his own. We hit the chinlock for a bit until a clothesline puts both guys down.
Hurricane dives over for the hot tag and the fans react as strongly as they can. House is quickly cleaned until Regal gets in a title shot to Kane’s head. Er, mask. Either way, it only gets two and Regal and Test are both ejected for their efforts. Charles Robinson trying to be intimidating is one of the best comedy spots of the year. Hurricane gets a sloppy hurricanrana on Christian and heel miscommunication sets up a double chokeslam (eh cute) for the pin and the titles.
Rating: C-. I’m so glad we had the Un-Americans all over the show for so many weeks to have them lose to the latest thrown together team. I’ve seen worse matches though and Hurricane is always entertaining, at least for a quick laugh. Not bad here and the fans got into the American victory, which is the whole point here.
Post break Hurricane says he and Kane are perfect together because they both wear masks and both use chokeslams. Tonight it’s time to celebrate and Kane says freaks are cool. Hurricane is ready to go to the Hurricave but Kane stops to kiss Terri before leaving with his partner.
Regal isn’t happy but says the team will regroup.
Booker T. vs. Rico
Booker hammers away in the corner until Rico reverses and fires off some kicks to the head. That springboard version always looks good. A kneelift only seems to fire Booker up and it’s the forearm into the Spinarooni. The scissors kick ends Rico in short order.
Post match it’s 3 Minute Warning for the beatdown and Goldust for the failed save. The difference is Booker is in gear instead of street clothes like earlier and Goldust actually hits Shattered Dreams on Rico before getting taken apart. Totally different idea you see.
Bischoff makes 3 Minute Warning vs. Goldust/Booker T. for next week. Again, not exactly a heel move. It’s putting them on square footing and taking away the Samoans’ advantage. How is that a heel boss?
Van Dam says he’s at peace with HHH and Flair but isn’t impassionate despite his bad ribs.
Bubba Ray Dudley/Rob Van Dam vs. HHH/Ric Flair
After some long entrances, HHH jumps Bubba from behind and gets backdropped for his efforts. The fans want tables but get Flair, who has no issues with Bubba, making this kind of pointless. Some shoulders put Flair down as JR thinks Ric is going through “the change of life”.
It’s right back to HHH as Bubba seems a bit hesitant to tag in the injured RVD. Bubba gets the better of a chop off with Flair before it’s off to Rob for a series of kicks. Rolling Thunder isn’t the best idea and HHH doesn’t stay down long enough to really validate the pain on the bad ribs. HHH gets in a belly to back suplex but the hot tag brings in Bubba a few seconds later.
The fans react like they’re watching an Orton match and only pick up a bit as Bubba hammers on Flair. House is quickly cleaned and Van Dam plays D-Von on What’s Up. It’s table time but HHH shoves Van Dam off the top. A throat snap across the top knocks Bubba into a Flair rollup (with tights) for the pin.
Rating: D+. This was awkward with the wrestling not being great and the story being sort of all over the place. It’s clear that they’re setting up Bubba as the next challenger (which is likely only going to be short term) and I’m really not sure how that’s going to work. The story makes sense but I’m not sure if Bubba Ray Dudley is going to work in that role no matter what. Van Dam really does look like a one off challenger and that’s a really bad thing given how second rate he looked next to HHH.
Bubba saves Van Dam from a low blow and almost completely misses the table when powerbombing HHH. The champ hit the corner and the table didn’t even break, causing the crowd to go almost silent. Van Dam legdrops him through the table (makes sense due to the bad ribs) instead to end the show.
Overall Rating: D. The bad times are here and that’s got me worried going forward. There was WAY too much 3 Minute Warning vs. Goldust/Booker T. (a fine feud on its own but it was a lot of overkill here) and too many nothing matches (the opener, Orton and Hardy vs. Big Show) to fill out a two hour show. Cut out some of the filler (like the concert, which felt completely tacked on) and turn it into some better stories and the show will improve. As for now though, Raw is back to its normal horrible.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:
It’s that time of year again. On March 1, I’ll be starting up the Wrestlemania Count-Up and that means I’ll be needing to redo a pair of them. Of course I’ll be redoing Wrestlemania XXXII but as usual, you all get to pick which other one I do.
I did XXI last year and I’m redoing XXXII this year but all thirty others are available.
Appearance on the Positively Pro Wrestling Podcast
I recently got to be a guest on a fairly new show with the idea of being positive instead of bashing everything WWE does. We’re talking about Wrestlemania experiences and I talk about what it was like being at Wrestlemania XXX and XXXII. The host is a very smart guy and it was a lot of fun to be on the show. Check it out.
Smackdown – February 21, 2017: But It’s A Battle Royal!
Smackdown Date: February 21, 2017
Location: Citizens Business Bank Arena, Ontario, California
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, David Otunga. Tom Phillips, Mauro Ranallo
It’s a double shot tonight as we have a pair of big gimmick matches to get us further along the Road to Wrestlemania. First up it’s Natalya vs. Nikki Bella in a falls count anywhere match which should be the blowoff to their feud. Other than that it’s a ten man battle royal with the winner getting the World Title shot against Bray Wyatt at Wrestlemania XXXIII. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of last week’s triple threat match for the Smackdown World Title and Randy Orton’s decision to turn down his title shot against Bray Wyatt.
Opening sequence.
Here’s Daniel Bryan to get things going. We’re forty days from Wrestlemania and the road to get there is full of twists and turns. He brings out Women’s Champion Naomi, who has been given a week to either give the title back to Alexa Bliss or face her in a rematch. We actually get the YOU DESERVE IT chants and come on now. Wyatt was a stretch for that but NAOMI? She gets a chant about how hard she’s worked to get here? Give me a break.
It turns out that she’s injured and isn’t going to be able to defend her title. Naomi talks about how life can change in such a hurry because she was on top of the mountain a week ago and now she’s looking up from the bottom. She hands over the title and says she’s probably out of Wrestlemania as well.
However, she’s going to be back to take the title from whomever is borrowing it in her absence. Naomi leaves and here’s Alexa Bliss to laugh about the performance. With Naomi gone, Bliss says that she should be the champion since she never got her rematch. Bryan doesn’t think so and the title is going to be on the line RIGHT NOW.
Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss
The title is vacant coming in. Becky starts fast with some rollups but gets kneed in the ribs and we hit the choking on the ropes. Bliss’ basic offense continues until a quick Bexploder sends her outside as we take a break. Back with Becky getting two off a missile dropkick, which of course warrants a crowd reaction shot. Bliss gets in a quick shot to the throat for the pin (while holding trunks) and the title at 9:03 in an ending that is as sudden as it sounds.
Rating: D+. The ending really hurt things here as it just came and went without any real build to it. Bliss winning the title makes sense as this felt like a quick match for the pure sake of giving the title back to Alexa. To be fair, it’s not like she should have lost the thing in the first place. At least it’s back where it should be now.
Mickie James comes down to celebrate and gets in a fight with Becky.
Dean Ambrose wants his chance to main event Wrestlemania back and if he gets to break Baron Corbin’s legs in the process, so be it.
Kalisto wants to be in the main event so tens of thousands of people can chant LUCHA LUCHA LUCHA.
Miz runs down his resume and thinks being in the main event of Wrestlemania should be added.
Natalya is ready to expose Nikki Bella as a fraud.
Breezango vs. American Alpha
Non-title with Breezango jumping them at the bell. A double kick to Jordan’s head puts him in trouble. That lasts all of thirty seconds as Jordan gets over for the tag, setting up the Steiner Bulldog for the pin on Fandango at 1:45.
The Usos show up in the crowd to say they’re coming for the titles. Just not tonight you see. A lot of trash is talked with threats of jumping Alpha from behind.
Black History Month video on Jackie Robinson.
AJ Styles says he’s going to Wrestlemania.
Dolph Ziggler superkicks the wall of the interview set.
Mojo Rawley is ready to win another battle royal.
Luke Harper is done obeying Bray Wyatt and after tonight, there’s nowhere left for Bray to run. These promos for the battle royal are a great touch and it’s even better that most of them have had a different backdrop (Harper was in the Wyatt area, Mojo was in the locker room, AJ was just backstage etc.). You don’t get these enough and they can do a lot of good in the span of thirty seconds.
Nikki Bella says after tonight, Natalya will be the broken Hart.
Nikki Bella vs. Natalya
Falls count anywhere. An early spear puts Natalya down and Nikki grabs her facebuster for an early two. It’s already table time (falls count anywhere means No DQ by definition) but Natalya baseball slides it into Nikki’s face. They quickly head over the barricade with Natalya doing You Can’t See Me for a nice touch.
Nikki comes back with a shot off the barricade and the Disaster Kick (looked great for a change) to put Natalya down for two. Back to ringside they go with Natalya getting in a few kendo stick shots before loading up the announcers’ table. Nikki fights out of a powerbomb attempt and gets in an Alabama Slam onto the table for a close two.
We come back from a break with Nikki getting to the ropes to break the Sharpshooter (which Natalya breaks, causing the announcers to accurately point out that she didn’t have to). Nikki no sells a suplex on the ramp and they head backstage with Nikki being sent into a conveniently placed Maryse.
Nikki sends her face first into a mirror for two of her own and it’s time to come back into the arena. Natalya can’t get the Sharpshooter as Natalya reverses into the Fearless Lock, only to have Maryse come out with a pipe to attack Nikki (really badly that is but at least she tried). Miz drags her off and Natalya gets the cheap pin at 14:02.
Rating: B-. The match had its good and bad moments but I liked it much more than I was expecting to. This was a better brawl than I was expecting and one of Nikki’s better matches, likely because it didn’t involve a ton of wrestling. Unfortunately it seems that we’re really getting that stupid mixed tag at Wrestlemania, even though I can’t imagine how they came to the conclusion that it’s the best possible idea.
Diamond Dallas Page Hall of Fame announcement.
Baron Corbin says he’s winning.
Apollo Crews says he’s winning.
Orton and Wyatt will be watching.
Battle Royal
Baron Corbin, Apollo Crews, Dolph Ziggler, The Miz, Luke Harper, Kalisto, AJ Styles, John Cena, Dean Ambrose, Mojo Rawley
The winner get the Wrestlemania title shot. After the long entrances, they waste no time in getting started with Ambrose and Corbin slugging it out in the corner. The fans are almost entirely split between Styles and Cena and you can tell they’re way into this instead of not really caring. Cena and Ziggler are both sent to the apron but quickly make it back in. A bunch of near eliminations go nowhere and Cena can’t get Corbin up for the AA.
We take a break and come back with Corbin as the only man standing. He tosses Rawley for the first elimination but eats a superkick from Ziggler. Kalisto gets up and starts kicking away until kind of botching what looked like a moonsault press to Dean. Ziggler and Kalisto both wind up on the apron and a pull of the mask sets up a superkick to eliminate Kalisto, getting us down to eight. Crews kicks Ziggler in the head though (DANG he healed from that knee injury in a hurry) and it’s down to seven. Ziggler chairs Kalisto though and Corbin tosses Crews, who chases Ziggler off with the chair.
We’re down to Corbin, Cena, Miz, Ambrose, Harper and Styles and it’s AJ having to flip out of the AA. Almost everyone hits a hard strike and it’s Miz in the middle of the ring, meaning it’s time for the running corner dropkicks all around. Cena pops up and backdrops Miz out, which is probably a way to keep setting up that stupid mixed tag.
Back from another break with Styles and Ambrose knocking each other down. Cena loads up the Five Knuckle Shuffle on Styles but walks into End of Days. Ambrose tosses Corbin from behind and is quickly pulled to the floor for another End of Days. With Cena staggering to his feet, Miz sneaks in and tosses him, with Cena leaving a bit too calmly.
So we’re down to Styles, Ambrose and Harper with Dean getting back inside. All three are quickly put on the apron for a three way slugout with Dean having to hang on very carefully. AJ gets on Dean’s shoulders and gets back in, allowing Harper to superkick Dean out to the floor, leaving us with two. Harper stays on the apron and pulls AJ over the top to the join him but they’re both back in a few seconds later. Luke suplexes him to the apron again but quickly follows him out there, only to have Harper pull him out at 22:22.
Rat…..Actually not so fast as the referees say Harper hit at the same time (it wasn’t even close and they’re not showing replays) so here’s Daniel Bryan for a ruling. The official decision is a draw so there’s no winner. However, we will determine a winner next week. Harper blasts AJ with the discus lariat and poses to a rather mixed reaction to end the show.
Rating: B. That ending really dragged things down as this was a heck of a battle royal leading up to the finish. Harper winning was the logical call here and I’m really not sure why they went with that double ending. From what I could tell, Harper’s feet were either on the apron or the steps when he landed but officially it was a tie. I don’t get that.
Wyatt and Orton pop up on screen to laugh at Harper to end the show. That also suggests that there’s no reason for AJ to have been involved in the ending like that.
Overall Rating: B-. I’m still trying to get over that ending as it really hurt what should have been a big moment. Unless they’re still trying to force AJ vs. Shane (who I don’t remember seeing recently) out of this, that should have been Harper winning clean. Still though, the rest of the show was good enough and it was certainly eventful but the Women’s Title change and the ending felt somewhere between forced and messy, neither of which are good.
Results
Alexa Bliss b. Mickie James – Rollup with a handful of trunks
American Alpha b. Breezango – Steiner Bulldog to Fandango
Natalya b. Nikki Bella – Pin after a pipe shot from Maryse
A battle royal went to a draw
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Ring of Honor TV – February 15, 2017: When Did This Promotion Go Off The Rails?
Ring of Honor Date: February 15, 2017
Location: Center Stage Theater, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Mark Briscoe
We’re still getting ready for the Fifteenth Anniversary Show and that means we’re still getting ready for the finals of the Decade of Excellence Tournament. The big story from last week is Donovan Dijak earning a TV Title shot against Champion Marty Scurll, which may or may not take place at the pay per view. Let’s get to it.
Cody Rhodes is sitting in a dark room smoking a cigar. He goes over some of his former gimmicks and asks if the world is ready for the American Nightmare.
Opening sequence.
Adam Page vs. Matt Sells
Page jumps him during the entrances and hits a Helluva Kick in the corner. A toss into the post sets up the Rite of Passage for the pin at 1:14. The match was such a squash that we cut to the commentary team twice in less than seventy five seconds and Page never took his jacket off.
Post match the rest of the Bullet Club comes out, including Cody as the big deal. Cody gets a huge face reaction from his hometown fans but rips on the crowd because this is such a garbage city. Ever since he moved in to the richer neighborhoods, Cody knew that he and his family were better than the rest of the people in the town. Right now though, he’d like to have Jay Lethal come out here for a chat. Cue Lethal who charges into the ring after some trash talk. Cue Bobby Fish to try and help (he and Lethal are teaming up tonight), followed by Alex Shelley, Lio Rush and Jay White for the real save as we take a break.
Jay Lethal/Bobby Fish vs. Adam Cole/Cody
This was scheduled for later but we’re doing it right now. Fish clotheslines Cody down to start as Kelly praises Mark for not jumping in and helping on the brawl. We head outside with the Club taking over on Fish as Lethal should be a bit more helpful than that. Cody suplexes Cole onto Fish for two and we hit the chinlock.
The beating takes us into a break but we come back with the illegal Lethal chopping Cole down. It’s not enough for the hot tag though as Cody dances a bit and stomps Fish back into the corner. Fish gets in an exploder suplex and there’s the hot tag to Lethal. Everything breaks down (as it always tends to do) and the Lethal Injection hits Cole….who isn’t legal.
There’s a Lethal Combination to Cole as Fish runs over Cody, putting all four down at the same time. Back from a second break with Lethal hitting the suicide shove on Cody, which even the announcers acknowledge didn’t have a ton of effect. Fish ducks a Shining Wizard and Cole taps to the kneebar at 14:02.
Rating: B-. The idea here was to set up Fish’s title shot in Manhattan and while I don’t buy Fish as having a prayer at winning there, this was as good of an idea as they could have used to set it up. Unfortunately the multiple breaks really cut things off here and there’s only so much you can do when such a large portion of the match is cut off like that.
Since this was the main event, Dalton Castle/the Boys vs. the Rebellion has been switched into its place. Therefore, Dalton wants to see some angry teeth from the Boys.
Mark Briscoe is ready to see his brother become #1 contender and win the title in Las Vegas.
Frankie Kazarian wants to see Daniels win because it’s Daniels’ last chance. One day Daniels is going to run out of tomorrows and the business is going to tell him it’s time to go. That’s what the business does and this is Daniels painting himself into a corner with his own blood. After this tournament, Daniels could either be at the peak of his career or he could be on his way out.
Quick hype for the Hardys vs. the Young Bucks. I still love the fact that there has been no mention of the Bucks going to TNA in this whole thing.
Mark Briscoe vs. Sal Rinauro
Kelly not knowing this match was coming was rather amusing. Sal dances to start and gets headlocked for his efforts. Mark sends him outside for the Blockbuster from the apron but Rinauro (who is a former Tag Team Champion but gets a LET’S GO JOBBER chant) grabs a Michinoku Driver for two. That just earns him a fisherman’s buster, followed by the Froggy Bow to give Mark the pin at 2:59.
Bobby Fish talks about how great of a tag team wrestler he was before ReDRagon broke up as both guys wanted to pursue singles careers. He made the TV Title important and now it’s no longer as important, at least until he decides to win it again. I’m assuming this was to hype up the Cole match but he never mentioned Cole or the title match.
Rebellion vs. Dalton Castle/The Boys
Beer City Bruiser and Silas Young are on commentary. King strikes a pose in front of Castle to start so we have the third dancing sequence of the show (kind of at least). Dalton gets chopped to officially get things going but he takes Kenny down with a waistlock for his efforts. Titus comes in for a staredown but it’s quickly off to one of the Boys (names would be appreciated). Unfortunately the match is ignored at this point because Beer City Bruiser is out of beer. King talks trash but here’s Colt Cabana with a six pack for the Bruiser.
Back with Bruiser drinking beer (just labeled “beer”) and Cabana taking his place on commentary. The beating of Boy #1 continues as the announcers argue over whether Cabana should go in and beat Castle up. Kelly calls them Boy #1 and Boy #2 (Cabana: “Boy oh boy.”) as #1 gets over and makes the hot tag to Castle. Dalton’s lifting German suplex gets two on King as everything breaks down. Castle hits back and forth running knees until he gets launched out to the floor. That leaves Boy #2 to take the Sky Splitter and the frog splash from Titus is good for the pin at 10:04.
Rating: D-. Where do I even begin? First of all: the Rebellion sucks and there’s no other way to put it. They’re not a good team and the wrestlers aren’t all that great but above all else the gimmick is just horrible. How many indy companies have something like that and how many of them are nothing compared to ROH? Other than that most of this match was set up to be a story about Cabana and the Bruiser instead of ANYTHING else. It had no business being the main event but for whatever reason, they switched this with a match that had actual star power and a decent story.
Overall Rating: D. What in the world is going on with this company right now? The World Title is barely a thing, the TV shows are all over the place, the big story is about waiting on a #1 contender and right now the big draw is bringing in a TNA team to face a team that would rather be in Japan.
When did Ring of Honor go flying off the rails like this? The show is a huge mess and I have no idea what the heck the point of this promotion is anymore. Right now it’s a big combination of everyone leaving and trying to throw things together with the leftover pieces. If an argument over who should be the co-commentator on the main event is the best story they’ve got, they’re in major trouble.
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Monday Night Raw – February 20, 2017: They’ve Hit the Switch
Monday Night Raw Date: February 20, 2017
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton
It’s a big show this week with a ton of things to get to. First of all, Brock Lesnar is scheduled to be in the house and that’s huge in general. Second, Bayley has been told to either give her title back to Charlotte or else, which could mean multiple things. Oh and Rock might be in town. Let’s get to it.
In Memory of George Steele. Not Ivan Koloff for some reason.
We open with a long recap of the Festival of Friendship and Kevin Owens turning on Chris Jericho. Sweet popcorn baked into a pie that was an amazing segment.
Owens is sitting in the ring in the dark in a chair to get things going. When he was growing up, if anyone had told him he would be defending the World Title against Goldberg in the main event of a pay per view, he would have thought you were crazy. Of course he’d be in the main event of a pay per view, but against Goldberg? The Goldberg chants start up and Owens thinks that’s exactly what he wanted to hear.
That’s the chant that makes Goldberg think he’s invincible as they head into their match at Fastlane. At the pay per view, all Owens has to do is outlast and outsmart Goldberg because the longer a Goldberg match goes, the weaker and weaker he gets. Owens is the master of outsmarting opponents and no one knows how to play the game like him.
Goldberg can say Owens is next all he wants but as far as Owens is concerned, Goldberg is nothing. As for what happened last week with Jericho….Owens drops the mic and walks out. This is the Owens that we’ve been waiting to see on the main roster for a long time and that’s nothing but good as we head into the final stretch to Wrestlemania. Owens was great here and that’s awesome to see.
Cesaro/Sheamus vs. Enzo Amore/Big Cass
The winners get a title shot at Fastlane. Cass slugs it out with Cesaro to start before it’s off to Enzo, who is launched at Sheamus in the corner. Back from an early break with Enzo in trouble but backdropping Cesaro out to the floor. Sheamus gives chase though and Cesaro just blasts Amore with an uppercut to break up the hot tag attempt (Cue crowd reaction shot!). Cass comes in a few seconds later and everything breaks down. The corkscrew uppercut drops Cass but Enzo breaks up the swing. The East River Crossing ends Cesaro at 9:17.
Rating: C-. Can we please wrap up the Cesaro and Sheamus experiment already? They weren’t an interesting team in the first place and for some reason we’re still watching them do their thing. Then again, the tag division is pretty much four teams (if you count New Day) so it’s not like there’s any better option.
Post match Enzo runs his mouth and gets Brogue Kicked. That doesn’t feel exactly like a heel turn.
Owens is leaving when Mick Foley comes in to say he has a match with Sami Zayn tonight. Kevin chuckles and says he thought Foley liked Sami.
Video on Braun Strowman.
Video on Bayley winning the Women’s Title and fulfilling her lifelong dream. This sounds like the setup for a cruiserweight match.
Roman Reigns interrupts Foley and wants to fight Strowman tonight. Foley says that can’t happen but here are Anderson and Gallows to interrupt. They want to fight Reigns again tonight and Foley agrees if Roman can find a partner.
Brian Kendrick vs. Akira Tozawa
I would have expected a bit longer build to this one. Tozawa won’t shake hands so Kendrick hits him before the bell, including sending him neck/ear first into the turnbuckle hook. The Captain’s Hook knocks Tozawa out and there’s no match.
In the back, Kendrick says he won’t be disrespected like that.
Roman Reigns/??? vs. Anderson and Gallows
Non-title and Reigns’ partner is……not here as this is just going to be a handicap match. Anderson starts for the team but Roman drops them both to control early on. Gallows kicks him in the face though and it’s already off to the chinlock. The Boot of Doom is broken up and it turns into a double beating on the floor. A chair is brought in but Reigns takes it away and beats the champs down for the DQ at 3:57.
Rating: D+. Another short match that makes me wonder what the point is in having the Tag Team Champions get treated like this. Is there NO ONE ELSE that can do the mini feud with Reigns? Like, no two big guys you could throw out there? It’s almost like having the divisions this divided has ruined a lot of things and gives us moments like this.
Post match Reigns Superman Punches Gallows and spears Anderson out of the air, sending the champs crawling away.
Video on New Day being announced as the hosts of Wrestlemania.
New Day vs. Rusev/Jinder Mahal
Reigns couldn’t have beaten up Rusev and Mahal? Before the match, New Day says they’re working on a bunch of things right now, including being the hosts of Wrestlemania and trying to become the voices of the hyenas in the new Lion King movie (Kofi: “That’s not a joke.”).
On top of that, they’ve got the ice cream machine plans back and THEY’VE DIGITIZED THEM! Lana holds up a tablet and says she has the plans….which seem to be authentic. Apparently they include a flux capacitor, three unicorn hairs and New Day starts panicking. Woods: “HOW DID SHE GET THE PLANS?” Big E.: “You know she’s Russian right?”
The match is joined in progress with Rusev grabbing a bearhug on Kofi. It’s quickly off to Jinder, who can’t do a thing due to high levels of being Jinder Mahal. Big E. comes in and cleans house, including putting Rusev on the floor for a big dive. This lets Woods take the tablet back and completely destroy it for a big pop. The Midnight Hour puts Jinder away at 3:42.
Rating: D+. What in the world happened to Rusev? Like really, the guy should have been a big deal or at least feuded with Big Cass but now he’s jobbing in a nothing tag team? This really is a waste of someone who could have been something special and of course he still could be fine, but at the moment it’s a big waste of time. New Day is fine in this role as it’s not like they have anything else to do right now so let them have fun at Wrestlemania.
Video on George Steele.
Austin Aries is in the ring for the contract signing between Neville and Jack Gallagher. Since Gallagher is present, there are already cookies and tea prepared. Gallagher quickly signs before Neville can even come out. Neville does the same and immediately goes to leave, only to be stopped by Gallagher.
Neville mocks all of the British stereotypes and calls Gallagher a caricature. The real streets of England look like Neville but Gallagher is what the WWE Universe wanted Neville to be. Gallagher assures him that he is NOT a joke because this is the real thing. The table, including the tea is turned over and the fight is on with the headbutt sending Neville outside. Gallagher is one of my favorites at the moment but if they don’t do Neville vs. Aries for the title at Wrestlemania, they’ve lost their minds.
Nia Jax b. Sara Pierce
Splash and Samoan drop finish Pierce at 34 seconds.
Post match Nia says she’s putting Bayley and the title on notice.
Black History Month video on Barack Obama.
Here’s Bayley for her first appearance as Women’s Champion. She grew up here in California and had a dream of being a champion and getting to point at a Wrestlemania sign. When she was a kid, her dad brought her to the events and bought her all the shirts and toys. Last week, the first thing she did was call her dad and it’s a call she’ll never forget. Bayley’s dad is here tonight and the fans are making her look cool in front of her dad.
Cue Stephanie McMahon to ask if Bayley’s dream included everyone wondering if she could have done it without Sasha Banks. Stephanie’s daughters look up to her and she wants to know if Bayley is going to throw everything away for the sake of a championship that she didn’t earn. Bayley is about to hand it over when Sasha Banks comes out to say don’t do it. She thinks about it but says no way is she handing the title over. Bayley won the title because of the WWE Universe. The title belongs to all of them and she’ll defend it any time any place.
Cue Charlotte to say she’s cashing in her rematch at Fastlane. Sasha cuts her off and says Bayley will keep the title at the pay per view. As for tonight though, Sasha’s knee is feeling fine so let’s have a trip down memory lane. Stephanie makes the match right now because of course she gets to have the last word.
Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte
Bayley is on commentary. Joined in progress again with Sasha grabbing a headscissors but getting her face driven into the match. Charlotte does the Figure Four faceplants and grabs a necklock. Sasha is sent outside and we take a break. Back with Charlotte grabbing a dragon sleeper. Sasha fights out and makes her comeback, including a dropkick in the corner. Cue Dana Brooke for a distraction but Bayley cuts her off, allowing the Banks Statement to make Charlotte tap at 10:03.
Rating: C-. This didn’t have time to go anywhere with the long break in the middle but you can pretty much pencil in the four way at Wrestlemania from here. Sasha is going to make a great heel when she turns, even if you can see it coming a mile away. Oh and can we please drop the “renewal of a rivalry” when they last fought about two months ago? That’s rather pitiful.
Diamond Dallas Page Hall of Fame video. This is LONG overdue.
Sami Zayn knew Owens would do this kind of thing and he told us all it would happen. He sees a lot of similarities between Owens and Samoa Joe (insert your own Scott Steiner “HE’S FAT” joke here), including both of them doing all kinds of horrible things for the sake of some demented loyalty to someone else. Tonight, Sami is kicking Owens’ teeth down his throat.
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn
Non-title. Before the match, cue Samoa Joe to massacre Sam. For some reason he agrees to the match anyway and it’s a Cannonball to crush Zayn even worse. The referee pulls him off so it’s a second Cannonball and the Pop Up Powerbomb to give Owens the pin at 1:11.
At 10:48pm, this show is dedicated to the memory of Ivan Koloff.
The bosses are in the back and Stephanie ribs on Foley for not coming out there during either the women’s segment or Samoa Joe beating Sami down. Foley FINALLY stands up for himself and blames Stephanie for Seth Rollins being injured. He was telling HHH and Stephanie how great Samoa Joe was twelve years ago and yells about how he’s not letting Stephanie’s greed get in the way of this show. Stephanie threatens him with an “accident” and Foley leaves.
Cole is in the back for a sitdown interview with Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman. We get straight to the point with Goldberg but Heyman cuts Cole off and says Lesnar isn’t interested in questions like this one. Heyman says Lesnar isn’t interested in hearing about Goldberg winning the title so Lesnar scares Cole away and stares straight into the camera.
Paul talks about Owens attacking Jericho last week because Lesnar disagrees with Owens being the most violent champion in years. Lesnar isn’t interested in hearing about Owens but Heyman talks about Kevin’s greatness anyway. A lot of people want to see Owens pull it off but Lesnar disagrees because if Owens loses, it’s Goldberg vs. Lesnar for the title. That’s just one more thing for Lesnar to conquer at Wrestlemania and that’s what he wants to do.
The ring is reenforced for the main event.
Braun Strowman vs. Big Show
And yes, this really is the main event. Show grabs a wristlock to start but Braun rolls around and nips up to escape. Now that’s going to get him noticed. Show shoves him down but gets punched in the jaw and dropped for his efforts. Strowman charges into a choke but easily reverses into a DDT for two. A clothesline drops Show for two and it’s all Strowman so far.
Show reverses a suplex into one of his own and grabs the chokeslam for two. The powerslam doesn’t work so Show puts him on top for the superplex. Strowman escapes that but dives into the KO Punch for two. Show loads up the Vader Bomb, only to have Strowman get up for the powerslam (doesn’t look great) for two of his own. Not that it matters as Braun hits another powerslam for the pin at 12:10.
Rating: C. Right here is a great example of a match that doesn’t need to be good to get the point across. Much like last week, this was about Strowman showing that he’s the new star instead of the old guard like Show or Mark Henry. It’s a very simple idea but they’re telling the right story, which is all you can ask for.
Post match Reigns comes out and gets in a few Superman Punches but Strowman hits the powerslam to end the show.
Overall Rating: C+. This was an odd show as they advanced a lot of stories and set up a bunch of stuff for Fastlane but there’s nothing going on here that is worth going out of your way to see. Above all else though they’ve hit the switch and it’s clearly time to get ready for Wrestlemania. They’re taking things more seriously and you can see where a lot of the stories are going. I can’t believe I’m saying it but for once, I actually care about the Raw stories more than Smackdown. The show has been good lately and it’s at the perfect time.
Results
Enzo Amore/Big Cass b. Cesaro/Sheamus – East River Crossing to Cesaro
Anderson and Gallows b. Roman Reigns via DQ when Reigns used a chair
New Day b. Rusev/Jinder Mahal – Midnight Hour to Mahal
Nia Jax b. Sara Pierce – Samoan drop
Sasha Banks b. Charlotte – Bank Statement
Kevin Owens b. Sami Zayn – Pop Up Powerbomb
Braun Strowman b. Big Show – Powerslam
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