IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: December 25, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Host: Renee Young

Welcome Home.

The arena is empty and Renee Young is our host.

First up: a look at the opening of the WWE Performance Center.

We get packages on all the people that have gone from NXT to the main rosters: the Wyatts, Shield, Fandango, Xavier Woods, Damien Sandow, Antonio Cesaro and Big E. Langston. Ignore that Cesaro, Fandango and I beliee Sandow were in WWE before they came to NXT.

Video on the first NXT Tag Title match with British Ambition beating the Wyatts.

Bo Dallas knows we want to hear about his rise to the title but we need to hear how important it is to Bo-Lieve. We get a clip of him beating Langston to prove the power of the Bo-Lievers.

Video on all of the WWE stars who have made cameos here in NXT.

Back to Young who introduces the only match that could have been match of the year in NXT: Sami Zayn vs. Antonio Cesaro 2/3 falls. Cesaro going into beast mode to get the wind is still amazing and makes me even sadder every time I see him jobbing to Los Matadores.

Antonio Cesaro vs. William Regal

Cesaro easily powers Regal down but the Englishman counters into a cross arm choke. He leans backwards to put Cesaro over his knees while still choking, only to be flipped forward to escape. Back to the test of strength before Regal counters a front facelock into a dragon sleeper. Cesaro flips him forward in a kind of reverse suplex for two but Regal gets him down into the corner and does his “distract the referee while kicking the opponent in the face” spot.

Regal is taken out by referees but Cesaro goes after him and extends a hand. Regal stares him down and shakes hands as we go off the air.

Results

Antonio Cesaro b. William Regal – Neutralizer

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 25, 2017
Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Booker T.

For reasons of “USA Told Us To Do It”, WWE presents a three hour Monday Night Raw on Christmas night. As a bonus, the first hour will feature no commercials, because if there’s one thing I think of when I watch Raw, it’s that there’s not enough material. John Cena is back for another one night shot so let’s get to it.

Speaking of Cena, here he is to open things up. Actually hang on a second as Cena says there’s something that needs to change. Cena goes outside and says someone is wearing the wrong colors. He takes off his hat and shirt and hands them to a kid with some sort of a disability who is wearing his old orange gear. And that is why Cena comes off as a superhero and is just flat out awesome to boot.

That earns a MERRY CHRISTMAS chant and Cena talks about how WWE is like a family. However, he wants to say cheers to the good and bad times, but cheers on a special day like today. Cue Elias to interrupt for his big spot of getting a rub from Cena. John actually agrees to walk with him but they get cut off by a CM Punk chant. Elias: “CM Punk ain’t gonna interrupt me.”

Cena says we need to have some fun tonight and grabs a chair so Elias can perform. The lights go down and Elias is about to play but the CM PUNK chants cut him off again. The song starts and of course it insults Chicago so Cena cuts him off and says hit the lights. Cena thinks Elias is the real jerk because he keeps insulting every city he’s in.

Elias thinks Cena might be right and offers to do the song again if Chicago will give him a second chance. He sings again and this time sings a rather nice version before handing it off to Cena for “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”. Cena starts off but gets punched in the face for his efforts. Elias goes to leave but comes back to stomp away and challenges Cena to a match right now. A referee is fine with this and we’re ready to go.

John Cena vs. Elias

Cena, whose shorts look shorter than usual, gets hammered down to start but grabs a desperation headlock. Elias gets two off a release slam before tying Cena in the Tree of Woe. An Alberto Del Rio top rope double stomp gets another near fall but Cena avoids a second attempt.

Cena gets taken down again though and a Batista Bomb gives Elias another near fall. We hit the chinlock to eat up some more time with Elias even flipping forward to get Cena away from the rope. Back up and a hard clothesline gets two on Cena, which does so well that Elias does the same thing again for the same result.

Cena has to pull himself up using Elias’ body, earning himself another right hand to the face for two more. A quick STF has Elias in trouble but Cena doesn’t have it in full. Elias crawls to the ropes so Cena tries to grab it again, only to have Elias pop up for a jumping knee to the face.

That doesn’t even get a cover as Cena rolls outside before grabbing the STF again. This time Elias makes the rope but the damage seems to have been done. Something like a slow motion Drift Away gets two but Elias takes his sweet time posing. Cena pops up and initiates his finishing sequence. The AA is good for the pin on Elias at 16:08.

Rating: C+. Elias got in most of the offense here and that’s all you can ask for him here. No Elias shouldn’t have won here as it’s just a way to give the fans a feel good win and there’s nothing wrong with that. You have to imagine Cena will be around for the Rumble and he’s going to be a favorite so let him have a win to get some of his mojo back.

Cena salutes the kid in the crowd.

Samoa Joe video.

Jason Jordan comes in to see Kurt Angle but Seth Rollins cuts them off, saying he wants to face Samoa Joe tonight. In a repeat of the same thing he does every week, Jordan says he wants his match against Joe. Angle suggests that they team up to deal with the Bar first but neither seems interested. Kurt makes the match anyway and puts the titles on the line.

The two of them leave and Roman Reigns comes in. Angle gives him Joe tonight, with the Intercontinental Title on the line.

Brian Kendrick and Jack Gallagher are in the ring before Kendrick faces Hideo Itami. Kendrick laughs off the idea of being scared of Itami because the two of them are some of the finest competitors around.

Hideo Itami vs. Brian Kendrick

They forearm it out to start with Itami getting the better of it and demanding respect. Back up and a jumping knee to the face gives Kendrick two. We hit a cross arm choke on Itami but he’s back up without much effort. The tornado DDT into the neck snap across the top has Kendrick in trouble and a running corner dropkick makes it even worse. The GTS ends Kendrick at 4:00.

Rating: C-. Itami is a great striker but he doesn’t have the best fire in the world. Just shouting RESPECT ME over and over isn’t exactly going to make him the most popular guy, but at least he’s trying. Let him show off more of his strikes and see what he can do and maybe that’ll get him somewhere. As it is though, nothing all that special here.

Video on the announcement of the Women’s Royal Rumble, naturally with Stephanie getting most of the focus. Thankfully we do get some reactions from some of the women.

Mickie James, Sasha Banks and Bayley run into the very Christmas themed Miztourage. They sing some Miz themed Christmas carols. The ladies bail in a hurry.

Bayley/Mickie James/Sasha Banks vs. Absolution

Paige forearms Sasha in the face to start before it’s off to Mandy. Mickie comes in for a running forearm and it’s off to Bayley, who gets a heck of a reaction. It’s off to Deville who gets in her hard strikes, only to have Bayley take her back into the corner. The fight heads outside with Sonya hitting a heck of a clothesline to drop Banks and take over. The fans are happy to have Paige back in but it’s quickly back to Sonya for a hard knee.

We hit a bodyscissors for a bit before the villains take turns beating on Banks. The announcers continue to drool over Mandy (they have good taste) as she knocks Bayley and James off the apron to break up a hot tag attempt. As is so often the case though, Banks shoves her away a few seconds later, allowing the hot tag off to Bayley so house can be cleaned. Bayley starts throwing suplexes and even knocks Deville off the apron for good measure. A Bayley to Belly gets two on Paige as everything breaks down on the floor. Back in and the Rampaige ends Bayley at 10:14.

Rating: C. Absolution winning is the right call and they’re starting to establish themselves with more defined characters. I could go for Rose as more than the eye candy character but to be fair, what else is she supposed to do? Paige is a good leader and Deville is made to be the tough one so it’s not like the team needs many changes. Then again almost none of this matters until we get to the Rumble but at least the right team won.

We look at Dean Ambrose’s arm being destroyed last week. The injury may keep him out up to nine months.

Renee Young isn’t happy to interview Samoa Joe, who has no remorse for what he did to Dean last week. Joe is ready to take the Intercontinental Title when Reigns comes seeking vengeance.

Video on Kane and Braun Strowman becoming #1 contenders to Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble.

Kane vs. Heath Slater

Apparently Rhyno got Slater this match to toughen him up a bit. Merry Christmas buddy. Kane takes him into the corner for some knees to the ribs and there’s the side slam for good measure. Slater bails to the floor for a breather and a pep talk from Rhyno. As you might expect, Kane throws him right back to the floor and it’s time for more pep talking. Back in and Slater’s offense is shrugged off, setting up the chokeslam for the pin at 2:13.

Kane goes after Rhyno post match and a quick flurry is cut off by a chokeslam.

Here’s Curt Hawkins who has to tell himself to face the facts. 2017 hasn’t been his best year but the year isn’t over yet. How about a little Christmas miracle tonight? The open challenge is on.

Finn Balor vs. Curt Hawkins

Hawkins grabs a quick rollup for two and gets the same result off the same move. Balor calmly kicks him down and hits the Coup de Grace for the pin at 1:30.

The Miztourage sings to Goldust and throw in a DVD of Santa’s Little Helper. Titus Worldwide comes up and Goldust gives them the DVD.

Bray Wyatt talks about how Sister Abigail always hated this time of year. He’s ready to face the Woken Warrior because Matt Hardy is surrounded by the fireflies. Bray is here.

Wyatt heads to the ring but Matt runs in and the fight is on. A Twist of Fate misses and Bray bails to the floor. After threatening to DELETE Bray, Matt throws in some maniacal laughter.

The Bar isn’t happy with having to defend their titles but they’re ready to fight. Sheamus has a gift for Cesaro, including a char containing their catchphrase. The gift: a Dean Ambrose action figure with a missing arm! Cesaro has a gift for Sheamus as well: a Seth Rollins action figure which Sheamus can break just like the real one tonight. There’s more in the box too as Cesaro has gotten him a Jason Jordan figure too. Sheamus: “I don’t want this.” Cesaro says no one wants Jordan so it’s perfect.

Cedric Alexander gets his Cruiserweight Title shot next week.

Enzo Amore/Drew Gulak/Ariya Daivari vs. Akira Tozawa/Mustafa Ali/Cedric Alexander

Miracle on 34^th Street Fight but first Enzo (as Santa, with the other two as his elves) has to run his mouth about Cedric not getting a present on Christmas morning. Even though it’s a street fight, Daivari and Cedric start things off with Alexander cleaning house in short order. Tozawa and Ali take out Daivari and Gulak with dives as we take a break.

Back with Enzo whipping Tozawa back first into a Christmas tree. Tozawa remembers that he’s only fighting Enzo though, meaning the hot tag brings in Ali a few seconds later. The rolling X Factor gets two and there’s the 054 for two with Gulak making the save. Enzo’s candy cane kendo stick is taken away from him and begging off ensues. Gulak runs into Enzo by mistake, setting up a few stick shots to his back. The Lumbar Check ends Daivari at 7:49.

Rating: D+. So, again, why were the tagging in a STREET FIGHT? The match was about what you would expect here and the wrestling really wasn’t all that good. That being said, they did a decent enough job of setting up the title match with Alexander looking strong. This really didn’t do much for me though and felt rather forced, which isn’t the best idea during a comedy match.

Post break Enzo isn’t happy but runs into Nia, now with red and blue hair. It turns out they’re underneath the mistletoe and are about to kiss but Alexa Bliss runs in and needs Nia. Enzo doesn’t look happy.

Reigns is ready to hurt Joe for what he did to Ambrose last week.

Intercontinental Title: Roman Reigns vs. Samoa Joe

Reigns is defending and punches Joe in the face at the bell. Joe gets knocked into the ropes and it’s the apron boot for good measure. Back in and Joe grabs a belly to back suplex for two but Reigns snaps off the corner clotheslines. A big boot drops Joe again but he’s right back up with right hands to take us to a break.

We come back with Reigns getting two off a Samoan drop but getting punched in the face some more. It’s already off to the Koquina Clutch but Reigns is just too close to the ropes for the break. Joe takes him outside and the suicide elbow drives Reigns into the barricade. Reigns comes up holding his elbow so we hit the armbar in a logical move. The hold is broken and Reigns unloads in the corner before shoving the referee for the DQ at 12:45.

Rating: C+. This feels like a way to set up a rematch at some point in the future, likely at the Royal Rumble. Joe vs. Reigns is a good feud and it’s made even better when you have two people who can beat the heck out of each other. Working on the arm made sense and tying it back to Ambrose’s injury is a nice idea. Good brawl here, but it’s clear that they’re setting up for something in the future.

Post match Reigns beats on Joe even more, including a steps shot to the arm. Joe avoids a heck of a chair shot and looks a bit shaken up while bailing.

Rollins tells Jordan to bring it tonight and Jordan is ready.

The Miztourage is in the ring to sing about their Secret Santa match. I think you know where this is going.

Braun Strowman vs. Miztourage

The goons are thrown around with ease and the running powerslam ends Dallas at 58 seconds.

Powerslam to Axel, powerslam to Dallas, powerslam to Axel.

Here’s Alexa Bliss for a chat. She’s here tonight to give us the Gift of a Goddess because this has been her year. Bliss has dominated his year like a Jedi from Star Wars (unlike one from the DMV). That brings us to the announcement of the Women’s Royal Rumble, which Bliss takes credit for taking place. Cue Asuka to say she’s entering the Rumble because no one is ready for her. Bliss gets kicked down.

Brock Lesnar is back next week.

Tag Team Titles: The Bar vs. Seth Rollins/Jason Jordan

Cesaro and Sheamus are defending. Jordan wrestles Sheamus to the mat to start but the champs take him down with a double hiptoss. Rollins comes in off the hot tag and hits a suicide dive as we take a break. Back with Rollins in trouble as the champs take turns beating him down.

We hit the chinlock for a good while until Rollins fights up with some forearms to Cesaro’s head. That’s not enough for the hot tag though as it’s Sheamus cutting him off. A middle rope legdrop gives Sheamus two and we’re back in chinlock. Sheamus gets frustrated at Rollins fighting up again so Seth is sent outside for a clothesline from Cesaro. Jordan actually makes a save, earning himself a hard trip into the barricade.

Seth gets in a few shots but there’s no one to tag. Instead it’s the Irish Curse for two on Seth, followed by a hard knee to the face for the same. Jordan charges in for a save and the hot tag brings him back in. Everything breaks down and a pair of something like the Demolition Decapitators get two on Jason.

Cesaro unloads with right hands and a Brogue Kick takes Rollins down. The Cloverleaf sends Jordan scurrying over to the ropes and the champs are frustrated. Super White Noise is broken up though and Rollins takes Cesaro out to the floor. Back in, Jordan’s wheelbarrow neckbreaker is good for the pin and the title at 15:24.

Rating: C+. Well that was unexpected. I get the idea that it’s the first Christmas episode in twenty five years but that’s still not exactly something I would have guessed. It’s interesting to see where it’s going though and Jordan FINALLY has a win, albeit as a tag wrestler again (it’s almost like he shouldn’t have been moved out of his team in the first place). This is one of those things where I’m going to need more information, but at least it worked at the moment.

Overall Rating: C+. This show was a weird hybrid between a stand alone show that felt like something special and a show that actually advanced the stories. Then again, we have to get ready for the Rumble and they really don’t have time to burn off a show, even if it’s something like this. Hopefully people actually watched the show, but they’re going to be in a stretch to get much of an audience. Not a bad show though and better than I was expecting.

Results

John Cena b. Elias – Attitude Adjustment

Hideo Itami b. Brian Kendrick – GTS

Absolution b. Bayley/Mickie James/Sasha Banks – Rampaige to Bayley

Kane b. Heath Slater – Chokeslam

Finn Balor b. Curt Hawkins – Coup de Grace

Akira Tozawa/Cedric Alexander/Mustafa Ali b. Enzo Amore/Drew Gulak/Ariya Daivari – Lumbar Check to Daivari

Samoa Joe b. Roman Reigns via DQ when Reigns shoved the referee

Braun Strowman b. Miztourage – Running powerslam to Dallas

Seth Rollins/Jason Jordan b. The Bar – Wheelbarrow neckbreaker to Cesaro

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 25, 2000
Location: McKenzie Arena, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Attendance: 7,223
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

This is another request due to it being Christmas recently. One night late in WCW’s dying days, Raw has a show on Christmas night. If I remember right, Nitro didn’t air and I don’t think many people noticed. This is a few weeks after Armageddon and the 6 man Cell match so we’re rolling towards New Orleans and the Rumble which was very good. Let’s get to it.

And no this isn’t live of course. It was taped the Saturday before.

Here’s Stephanie to open the show. You know, the implants with a McMahon attached. She looks great though. The McMahons are celebrating Christmas at the moment, with Vince volunteering at a soup kitchen in Greenwich and HHH sending Steph here. Even Stephanie is getting into it, making something that reminds her of her mother: a fruitcake. We get a clip from the end of Smackdown, which is Rock and Undertaker arguing over something. Therefore tonight it’s Rock vs. Taker.

She brings out Edge and Christian with Angle as well. Angle is in his first reign as world champion while the Canadians are tag champions. Edge wishes Stephanie a Merry Christmas but they’re sorry that Foley isn’t here due to being fired last week. Christian insults Chattanooga for a bit and talks about Smackdown, which we see a clip from showing Edge pinning Rock to win the tag titles.

Angle does the same but with his own brand of humor. He’s given himself a Christmas gift and has flown out his family. Here’s an army of people that all look like Kurt. He introduces all of his family and all of their accomplishments. He talks about hitting Foley with a chair so the fans chant for Foley. Stephanie reminds us that he’s fired and the fans boo Kurt’s family. They sing Walkin In A Winter Wonderland until Jericho FINALLY cuts them off.

He tells Angle to shut up. Jericho liked the singing but instead it should have been the Twelve Days of Christmas. We have six Angles who will never be a laying, two valley girls and Stephanie, who gets all of her usual insults, in a a pear tree. For Christmas, Jericho wants the world title, and he wants it tonight. Angle yells but Stephanie cuts him off. The title shot is denied but instead it’s a six man: Angle/Canadians vs. Jericho/whatever team Chris wants. Jericho says that’s nice but he didn’t get anything for Stepahanie. What do you get for someone who’s had everyone? Jericho implies the Dudleys will be his partners.

Kurt gives his family a tour of the arena and runs into K-Kwik (R-Truth) and that’s about it.

Hardy Boys vs. Dean Malenko/Chris Benoit

Benoit is IC Champion and Dean is Light Heavyweight Champion. In the back, Matt tells Lita to stay in the back because she’ll get hurt. Lita goes anyway. Big brawl to start and Malenko pulls Benoit to the floor. Jeff is like cool man and hits a huge Poetry in Motion to the floor. That looked awesome. Benoit SNAPS off a dragon screw on Jeff’s leg to take over. That looked sick. Malenko works on the knee a bit as well but Jeff gets a SWEET spinning leg sweep cradle for two. A double dropkick puts the Radicalz down and it’s off to Matt. Everything breaks down and Lita hits Dean low. Top rope legdrop ends this.

Rating: C-. Nothing great here but the knee stuff was great. By that I mean one move but you get the idea. This would lead to Dean getting a date with Lita which wound up in a hotel room and Lita in some very nice lingerie. Anyway, not much to see here but it was nice to get the Hardys away from the Dudleys and Canadians.

Post match Matt gets put in the Texas Cloverleaf and Lita in the Crossface.

Post break Lita is being checked on when Benoit jumps Matt again.

Rock arrives and doesn’t care to hear about his match with Taker.

Debra is still Lieutenant Commissioner but it’s not fun without Foley anymore. She makes a triple threat Hardcore Title match with Raven, Blackman and Holly.

Vince calls Stephanie on voicemail and likes the match. He says he has to do something real quick at the soup kitchen but Trish’s voice is heard giggling.

We get a clip of Austin getting chokeslammed by Kane and then Austin demanding a match with him, which he gets tonight. Austin says he’ll beat Kane up tonight.

Hardcore Title: Hardcore Holly vs. Raven vs. Steve Blackman

Blackman is champion. Raven and Holly get into it before Steve gets there. I’m not sure what you want me to say here as it’s your usual one guy gets knocked down, the other two fight, the third makes the save. The challengers fight into the crowd but Blackman beats them both down out there. They go under the stage and into the back where Raven beats up what appears to be some stagehands. They go outside and Raven is thrown down some stairs. Holly finds a random 2×4 and swings at Blackman. He misses though and Blackman hits a German onto the hood of a car to retain.

Rating: D+. As I’ve said before, once you’ve seen one of these matches, you’ve seen them all. It’s just basic brawling with weapons that goes nowhere and then they have the ending. They had beaten this so far into the ground but by keeping it down to like three minutes per match, I think it’s ok.

Blackman is walking back to the locker room but Raven hits him with a board and steals the title.

The XFL is coming. OH YEAH!

Here’s Regal who is European Champion. Little trivia for you: he’s one of only two Europeans to hold that title. He blasts Americans for awhile until Kane comes out for his match. Ok then.

Kane vs. Steve Austin

Brawl to start with Austin hammering him into the corner. Regal is on commentary. A clothesline puts Kane down and another puts him on the floor. Austin gets pulled out there and Kane takes over. Regal gets up for some reason and Austin takes him down as well. Austin stomps on both of them as this is a total brawl. Back in the ring a big boot puts Austin down and they slow down.

A second boot is blocked and Austin goes for the knee. Kane fights back and wraps Austin’s leg around the post. Lawler says Kane is the official first entrant in the Rumble. Back in the top rope clothesline gets two. After a suplex gets two it’s a bearhug. Austin comes back with the Thesz Press and the elbow. Chokeslam, Stunner and Tombstone are countered until a Stunner hits. Regal pops up on the apron and Kane gets up. Regal finally gets in for the DQ.

Rating: C. This was fine. It was just a brawl that ran about seven and a half minutes and that’s all it really needed to be. The interesting thing is you could easily compare this to a lot of Cena’s matches on Raw today. There wasn’t anything to it for the most part and there wasn’t supposed to be. However Cena gets blasted for it and Austin is one of the most popular stars ever. Go figure.

Regal tries to bring in a chair but Austin clocks both guys with it instead.

Taker says he isn’t surprised by having to fight Rock later. He says Rock has the bark but he has the bite. Taker is still face here.

Cue The Kat in a robe. She has a gift with her. She gets in front of the announce table and grabs a mic. The gift is for JR and it’s the latest Divas video. As for King, Kat gets on the table and pulls the robe open to reveal some red lingerie. She shows the crowd too. Jerry gets a kiss also.

Stephanie barges in on T&A who says Trish isn’t here. She leaves and they imply Trish is with Vince.

Angle calls his parents as his brothers/cousin watch. Well that was pointless.

Too Cool vs. T&A

Grandmaster vs. Test to start. Stephanie comes out to watch, probably because of the jokes T&A made after she left. Sexay hits a middle rope dropkick and it’s off to Scotty so he can get beaten up for awhile. Albert comes in and Scott can’t do anything. Baldo (Albert) Bomb gets two as Grandmaster makes the save. Scotty gets in some kicks and a forearm to set up a double tag. Everything breaks down and Scotty sets for the Worm. Test kicks Scotty’s head off after it hits. He sets for the ending but Stephanie distracts him, allowing Grandmaster to roll up Test for the win.

Rating: D. Didn’t like this one at all. This whole show has felt like it’s just a labor to get through and that’s not good. To be fair though it’s Christmas night so it’s not like anyone is watching. Stephanie came in to mess with them, presumably to cost Trish’s team, but this went nowhere.

Post break, Albert comes in to talk with Stephanie. He offers his services to Stephanie for whatever she needs.

Chris Jericho/Dudley Boys vs. Kurt Angle/Edge/Christian

Jericho and Christian start things off. The fans want tables and Jericho tries a quick Walls attempt but settles for a slingshot into a rollup for two instead. D-Von and Edge come in and things speed up. Bubba comes in and does his always funny yelling. What’s Up to Edge. It’s Table Time already and everything breaks down on the outside. Edge hammers on Bubba but it’s quickly off to Christian.

The beating goes on for about 20 seconds before it’s off to Jericho and Angle. Jericho gets in a fight with Angle’s family who is all in the front row. The Dudleys put one of them through a table. The Dudleys and the Canadians fight up the ramp and Jericho hits a missile dropkick for no cover but the Lionsault eats knees. Angle Slam (and a good one too) beats Jericho.

Rating: C. This was going on so fast that it was hard to tell if it was good or bad. It certainly wasn’t boring and the big stuff looked pretty good. I liked it for the most part but much like the rest of this show and the show overall, it came and went and that’s all there really is to say about it.

The Angle family beats him down but the Dudleys make the save.

Edge and Christian say they’ll get the Dudleys for what they did.

Right to Censor vs. APA

It’s Buchanan/Godfather this time. Buchanan gives a very southern promo, talking about how evil the Dudleys are. Bradshaw starts with Godfather and the beating begins. Farrooq and Buchanan come in and the bald one takes a spinebuster. Bradshaw comes in and runs people over, including a top rope shoulder. Ivory interferes and Jackie runs her over. They get in the ring because Jackie has to get on my nerves at least once a year. Val Venis uses the distraction to run in and DDT Bradshaw. A Buchanan legdrop ends this. The match was nothing.

We get a video of Chyna taking a spike piledriver and injuring her neck. She had an MRI so we get a sitdown interview with her. Short version: I’m hurt, I’m sad, I’m successful outside the ring, I don’t like RTC, I’ll be back but not against men. Somehow that took six minutes.

Rock is in the back and cuts Kevin Kelly off because they are chanting his name. He gives his version of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and sings to Undertaker a bit too.

Undertaker vs. The Rock

I’ve never really seen these two have a good match so maybe this is the exception. Taker pounds him down and knocks Rock to the floor with one punch. Rock gets dropped onto the barricade and the table as JR is running out of room to run. Back in the ring Rock fires off a few rights and the jumping clothesline to take over. Swinging neckbreaker gets no cover but a Russian legsweep gets two.

Taker gets in a big boot and pounds away on the back. They mess up something so Taker hits a side slam for two. DDT by Rock gets two. More back work by Taker and this match isn’t breaking the streak these two have. Oh joy: it’s a bearhug. Rock fights out and now Taker hits a DDT of his own for two. Chokeslam and Rock Bottom are countered but a chokeslam hits. No cover though because he wants a Last Ride. And here’s Rikishi to interfere. Spinebuster to Taker but Rikishi pulls the top rope down and Rock wins by REALLY LAME DQ.

Rating: D-. What a boring match. They walked around, punched each other a lot, and that’s about it. The really bad ending didn’t help anything at all but hey, Rikishi is a top heel right? They don’t really give a reason or a thought as to whether or not it would work, but he was the next guy to feud with Rock I believe. Give me a break.

Rikishi stands tall to end the show.

Overall Rating: F+. OH MAN thank goodness it’s over. This was one of the least interesting shows I’ve seen in longer than I can remember. Nothing happened here, no one cared, no one wanted to be on the show it seemed, and nothing here would have seemed to have mattered. That being said, it’s unlikely anyone watched it but if one person did, it beat Nitro that night. Horrible show though.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

I forgot I had redone this and it really, really needed it.

December To Dismember
Date: December 3, 2006
Location: James Brown Arena, Augusta, Georgia
Attendance: 4,800
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

Naturally the opening video focuses on the Chamber and how amazing it is that there are WEAPONS in the pods now.

MNM vs. Hardy Boyz

The Hardys hit stereo superplexes but Melina gets on the apron for a distraction, only to get kicked down by Nitro by mistake. The Snapshot (flapjack/DDT combo) gets two on Jeff with Matt making the save, followed by a double cutter off the middle rope to drop Nitro and Mercury at the same time. The Swanton onto both of them at the same time gives Jeff the pin at 22:23.

Rob Van Dam thinks the ECW World Title is worth the risks of the Elimination Chamber.

Matt Striker vs. Balls Mahoney

Sabu has been attacked and is put on a stretcher. The BS chant drowns out the medics and the next theme music.

Elijah Burke/Sylvester Terkay vs. FBI

Terkay lays Guido out post match.

Sabu is taken away in an ambulance.

Daivari vs. Tommy Dreamer

Paul Heyman has found a replacement for Sabu: Hardcore Holly. The audience audibly groans. Not boos, not yells, not shouts, but groans in pure disappointment. That should not be happening on a wrestling show but can you blame them?

Mike Knox/Kelly Kelly vs. Kevin Thorn/Ariel

Kevin charges into a boot for two and Knox slowly pounds away before grabbing a front facelock. The hold is driven back into the corner for the tag to Ariel, meaning Kelly has to come in as well. Aries chokes a lot including a boot version in the corner which is nothing more than an excuse for an upskirt shot. It would be even better if Kelly actually sold any of this. Knox walks away instead of tagging in, leaving Kelly to take a choke legsweep for the pin at 7:43.

Post match Ariel keeps choking Kelly until Sandman (ECW legend) comes out for the save.

We recap the main event, which as usual is basically just a video about the Chamber and people talking about how extreme the match will be.

The Chamber is lowered.

ECW World Title: Hardcore Holly vs. Test vs. CM Punk vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Lashley vs. Big Show

A quick celebration takes us out after less than two hours and fifteen minutes on the air.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 24, 2018
Location: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Renee Young, Corey Graves

We’re taped here, because thankfully USA decided the show didn’t need to be live on a night that was going to have a grand total of fourteen people watching. The big match tonight is Ronda Rousey defending the Women’s Title vs. Natalya and we’ll also be seeing the followup to the McMahon’s taking over last week. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video is Twas The Raw Before Christmas, set to the poem with a look at what we’ll be seeing tonight. This was released on the YouTube page a few days ago and it was awesome.

Here’s Elias, in a Santa hat, to open things up. After saying what WWE stands for, he has a new holiday classic for us. The song is about how annoying kids can be around this time of year but when things get tough, just ask what Elias would do. When it’s bad though, just remember that you could be Bobby Lashley, and he sucks.

Elias vs. Bobby Lashley

Miracle on 34^th Street Fight so there are weapons around the ring, including Christmas trees. Lashley fires off shoulders in the corner to start until they head outside with Elias hitting him with a Christmas tree. Elias knocks him down again and we take a break. Back with Lio Rush helping put Elias in trouble and Lashley loads up a present. They come back in with Lashley throwing him in an overhead belly to belly and pouring out….Legos. Well that’s different. Not unique as I saw it done earlier this year, but different indeed.

Lashley loads up a superplex that wouldn’t put Rollins on the Legos whatsoever so Rollins shoves him onto them instead. A blast from a fire extinguisher blinds Lashley and he knocks Rush off the apron through a table. Another shot to the ribs with the fire extinguisher sets up the old Al Snow bowling ball to the crotch spot. Elias hits him with a cello for the pin at 12:36.

Rating: C-. It’s a tradition and I can’t get mad about it, but am I supposed to believe that the feud is over now? I don’t see why I should, as the ladder match should have ended things but this kept going anyway. The brawling was fine, but it’s not like this means anything more than the previous matches. It’s nice for Elias to win though, even if almost no one is going to see it.

We look back at the big announcement from last week.

Heath Slater wants his best friend back on Raw.

Tag Team Titles: Revival vs. Bobby Roode/Chad Gable

Roode and Gable are defending. Wilder knocks Gable down to start so Gable comes in with a monkey flip to Dawson. The armbar goes on and something like a flying headscissors takes Dawson down again. A blind tag brings in Dawson to take Gable down though and we take a break. Back with Gable still in trouble as the Revival keeps taking turns. Gable finally knocks Dawson down and it’s back to Roode to clean house.

Everything breaks down with Roode catching a kick to the ribs and flipping (!) Wilder onto Dawson for two. Gable comes back in for a rollup on Dawson, who gets the same off the same. They bridge up into a backslide but Dawson tags out just in time. An uppercut into a German suplex into a flipping (!) rollup cover gives Wilder two as Roode saves. Roode and Wilder fight to the floor and it’s a suplex reversed into a small package to pin Dawson (not legal) at 10:45.

Rating: C. As much as I want to see the Revival win, this was at least an entertaining match. Roode and Gable are a good team and proof that you can get something together if you actually do something with the people you have sitting around. The ending suggests a rematch and there’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s still not the ending I want.

The B Team tries to sell Apollo Crews a shirt in the form of the 12 Days of Christmas but he politely declines.

Lucha House Party works on a Christmas list but starts chanting again.

Curt Hawkins wants a new Hoverboard, a pet giraffe, dress socks, or A FREAKING WIN.

No Way Jose thinks Santa should get a gift this year. Like polar bear repellent. Or a conga line at the North Pole.

Video on the upcoming NXT callups.

Dolph Ziggler isn’t sure if he’s on the naughty or nice list but he wants a few things for Christmas. Like the Best in the World trophy, a standup special on Netflix, or respect when he beats Drew McIntyre and Finn Balor.

Drew McIntyre vs. Finn Balor vs. Dolph Ziggler

Before the match, Drew talks about not being worried because he’s a mountain lion. If the other two get in his way, he’s not worried to kick their heads off. After he gets done with this, he’s moving on to the Royal Rumble so he can main event Wrestlemania (becoming the first entrant).

Drew cleans house to start and knocks both of them into the corner, only to charge into a shot to the face both times. McIntyre gets sent outside and both guys join him, where Drew sends them into various hard objects as we take a break. Back with Balor caught in an armbar and then suplexing Ziggler into an armbar of his own. The big headbutt sends Ziggler back to the floor but Balor knocks Drew down.

The Coup de Grace misses though and Balor rolls through, right into a Zig Zag for two. Balor knocks Ziggler outside again and tries another Coup de Grace, only to get crotched by Ziggler. A superkick drops McIntyre for two with Balor finally hitting the Coup de Grace for the save. McIntyre gets dropkicked to the floor, leaving Balor to hit the Coup de Grace to put Ziggler away at 11:39.

Rating: C-. I’m completely done with seeing these three fight and while it’s better that McIntyre didn’t take the fall, he shouldn’t be toiling with these people. He should be going after the World Title, but since that doesn’t exist and we CAN’T switch people from one show to another save or at designated times, this is as good as he gets. At least Balor got the pin, which is the second best option.

Post match McIntyre yells at Ziggler for ruining things and gets Zig Zagged. So yes, it’s still going and we’ll be seeing them fight again.

Video on Tribute to the Troops.

The B Team still hasn’t finished the song and starts over.

And now, a visit from Mr. McMahon-A-Claus, featuring gifts for the fans. Like John Cena back on Monday Night Raw and Smackdown, Women’s Tag Team Titles (no dates given), and a steel cage match next week between Ziggler and McIntyre. That’s enough though as the suit is too hot. Vince: “You guys ever see the movie Bad Santa?” Vince smiles to the production assistants in a scene that felt like it normally wouldn’t make TV.

Mickie James/Dana Brooke/Alicia Fox vs. Sasha Banks/Ember Moon/Bayley

Mickie and Ember start things off with Mickie knocking her down for an early two. Ember nips up into a headscissors but Fox tags herself in, only to get superkicked to the apron. A suicide dive sends Ember into the barricade and we take a break. Back with Ember still in trouble as Mickie kicks her in the ribs. Ember finally knocks Dana away and brings in Bayley to almost no reaction. Banks comes back in for the Meteora on James, followed by Ember Eclipsing Fox to the floor. A blind tag brings in Bayley with the Backstabber sending Mickie into the Bayley to Belly for the pin at 8:31.

Rating: D. I know this is an ice cold show by definition but it’s not a good sign when a match like this had no heat whatsoever. Maybe it’s the fans just being done after having so much content, but maybe it’s because these women have been fighting in various combinations for what feels like years now. But nah, we can’t give them anything else to do of course.

Post match the Riott Squad comes in to take out the winners.

We look back at Seth Rollins blaming Baron Corbin for all of Raw’s problems and their argument last week to set up tonight’s main event.

Here’s Paul Heyman to celebrate the holidays, which means talking about Braun Strowman. Heyman has seen Strowman’s personnel files, which includes asking Santa Claus for a replica title as a child. Now he’s an adult though and wants the real thing at the expense of Brock Lesnar. That’s not happening because even Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer couldn’t find him a path to the title.

This brings out Strowman, with his arm in a bandage instead of a sling, and Heyman is panicked. Strowman puts reindeer antlers and a red nose on Heyman, calling him the red nosed advocate. He’ll be fine for the Royal Rumble and Heyman is going to get these hands. Short and sweet from Strowman here.

We look back at Natalya winning the gauntlet match last week.

Natalya expects nothing but the best from Ronda and knows Ronda expects the same.

Alexa Bliss wants Bayley to get some personality, Sasha some humility, Natalya….well she’s a lost cause, and Ronda some good makeup. No mention of Bliss being in charge here.

Tyler Breeze wants Fandango back fast and some Ariana Grande tickets. When told he can only have one thing, he picks the tickets.

Women’s Title: Natalya vs. Ronda Rousey

Rousey is defending. Natalya spins out of an early wristlock attempt but Rousey takes her to the mat without much effort. An early side triangle choke attempt doesn’t quite work as Natalya slips out to grab a waistlock. That’s reversed into a bodyscissors for a bit until Ronda sends her outside in a heap. Ronda looks concerned about her friend as we take a break.

Back with Rousey in trouble and Natalya making things worth with a bodyscissors of her own. The chinlock doesn’t last long and gives Natalya two, with the kickout seeming to just annoy her. An abdominal stretch, with Natalya picking up a leg, makes things even worse for Rousey. Since that’s a hard position to hold, Natalya goes with a dropkick for two. A delayed suplex gets the same and Rousey looks shaken in the corner.

It’s a clothesline to get Rousey out of trouble and she unloads in the corner. A running knee gives Rousey two but Natalya is right back with a Sharpshooter attempt. That’s reversed into Piper’s Pit but Rousey takes too long, allowing Natalya to get the Sharpshooter. With Natalya trying to bring it back to the middle though, Rousey reverses into an armbar for the tap at 15:43, nearly letting go so fast that Natalya hadn’t tapped yet.

Rating: C+. Match of the night so far, but I didn’t quite buy Natalya as having a real change of winning. Maybe it’s her inability to be good with the emotional side of things or the fact that her push has focused on the memory of Jim Neidhart, but this wasn’t exactly thrilling. Rousey did a good job with showing that she didn’t want to hurt her friend, which could help set up an eventual rematch.

Dean Ambrose says that he’s getting what he deserves this year as the Intercontinental Champion.

Fighting With My Family trailer.

Jinder Mahal vs. Heath Slater

Good thing they did that whole Slater is a referee thing for….a week? Slater knocks him down to start and grabs the chinlock but here’s Santa Claus for a distraction. Slater gets two, but it’s the Singh Brothers coming in for the DQ at 1:52.

Post match Santa gets in the ring and cleans house, including a Gore to Mahal because it’s Rhyno.

The B Team, looking exhausted from their singing, still can’t remember the end of the song but they fall asleep in the back.

We look back at Mr. McMahon-A-Claus’ announcements earlier.

Same video on the six NXT people coming up.

Seth Rollins is ready to finish Baron Corbin.

Apollo Crews wants a tank so he can moonsault over it.

The Ascension wants to punish people. Viktor: “Are we doing Secret Santa this year?” Konnor explains why that’s a stupid idea in an unfunny moment.

Kurt Angle, who needs to shave, is happy enough to not have Corbin be General Manager of Raw.

Seth Rollins vs. Baron Corbin

The week after the McMahons promise everything is what the fans want, Baron is main eventing the show. Seth unloads on him in the corner to start and knocks Corbin outside for the suicide dive. Back in and it’s way too early for the Stomp so Corbin bails, earning another dive. Corbin finally sends him outside and into the barricade as we take a break.

Back with Corbin hammering down on Rollins’ back and hitting the chinlock that you were all waiting to see. Rollins fights up and gets in a Blockbuster, followed by the Sling Blade. A Falcon Arrow gets two but the Stomp is countered into Deep Six. Rollins goes up top but the springboard clothesline is countered with a chokebreaker. That’s about it for Corbin’s offense though as Rollins kicks him in the ribs and hits the Stomp for the pin at 12:36.

Rating: C. And that’s completely it for Corbin, who will fade back into the midcard where he belongs and never darken the main event scene again right? That’s the logical path to take, so I’m sure it’s exactly what’s going to happen. The wrestling was fine but you could tell that everyone was spent and there isn’t much of a way around that. It was fine, but not exactly energized after the first few minutes.

Overall Rating: C-. That’s on a sliding scale here as there’s no reason to expect much from this show and the roster was already spent after a long show to start the evening. It’s far from bad but it’s nothing is going to matter by next week. They basically presented a show because they had to and that’s all they could do given all of the circumstances. It wasn’t great but for what it was, this was fine.

Results

Elias b. Bobby Lashley – Cello to the back

Chad Gable/Bobby Roode b. Revival – Small package to Dawson

Finn Balor b. Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler – Coup de Grace to Ziggler

Bayley/Sasha Banks/Ember Moon b. Mickie James/Dana Brooke/Alicia Fox – Bayley to Belly to James

Ronda Rousey b. Natalya – Armbar

Heath Slater b. Jinder Mahal via DQ when the Singh Brothers interfered

Seth Rollins b. Baron Corbin – The Stomp

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

So in something I’ve mentioned before but that you might not have seen, I’m a little bit psychotic when it comes to Christmas. Every year I spend about eight hours decorating a single room for Christmas and then watch over 180 Christmas specials. And yes I keep a list, which I am not allowed to start putting together until the Monday before Christmas. I cannot start watching them until the day after Thanksgiving and must be done with the entire list before the day I leave for my uncle’s house on Christmas Day. This cannot be changed and if it is, I will be depressed until at least a week into the new year.

Therefore, I give you these two things:

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: July 22, 2004
Location: Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

Things got interesting again last week with General Manager Kurt Angle revealing that his leg seems to be fine as he attacked Eddie Guerrero, costing him the Smackdown World Title in the process. Tonight is going to be all about the fallout as we’re coming up on Summerslam next month. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the cage match and Angle screwing Eddie over. That frog splash off the top of the cage looks better every time I see it.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Angle, again in the wheelchair with Luther Reigns pushing him to ringside. Angle gets in the ring on a crutch and insists that he is NOT a con artist. He’s an extraordinary human being capable of incredible things. Like winning an Olympic gold medal with a broken freaking neck. Last week he saw a horrible human like Eddie Guerrero about to steal the title and that inspired him to do the impossible. Sure he regressed after that and his surgeon wasn’t happy with him, but it was the moral thing to do.

Angle likes a Smackdown where people like John Cena are stripped of the US Title, men like John Bradshaw Layfield stand tall as the WWE Champion and Eddie becomes obsolete. As for tonight, Eddie needs to come out here and get on his knees to beg for his job. Before Eddie can come out though, Angle has hometown boy Tony Chimmel get in the ring. Tony announced Eddie as the winner of Angle’s last match, but since Eddie cheated and Tony announced him as the winner anyway, Tony should be fired.

Therefore, Tony has to get on his knees and beg first. He does beg, and it’s weird to hear the announcer voice talking in conversation instead of introductions. Angle fires him anyway and promises to have Eddie beg tonight as well. Good opening segment with Angle’s lies looking better than they did before. The Chimmel thing seemed very forced though.

Josh Matthews is filling in for Tony. Egads help me now.

Chavo Guerrero vs. Jamie Noble vs. Spike Dudley

The winner gets a title shot next week. Jamie and Chavo double team Spike to start until a missed clothesline puts Jamie down. Chavo is back up to jump Spike but the villains can’t get along, allowing Spike to get Jamie in a half crab. That’s broken up as well with Chavo throwing Jamie outside and Spike sending Chavo out as well. A dive hits both of them and everyone is down. Back in and Spike’s top rope double stomp hits Noble with Chavo adding a side salto for two. With Jamie down in the corner, the Dudley Dog finishes Chavo to give Spike the title shot.

Rating: C. The wrestling was good but it didn’t have any heat from the crowd. Spike winning is the best choice as Jamie hasn’t meant anything in about a year and Chavo vs. Mysterio has been done to death. It’s nice to have an entertaining match like this though and that’s always going to have a place on a wrestling show.

Video on the Japan tour. Now this makes sense compared to Raw’s version when they looked at shows in New England.

The women (they’re not wrestlers and I don’t think you can call four people a division) want to perform more often so Angle (still holding the US Title) makes a four way lingerie match. I think the women are supposed to be disappointed by the lingerie match but they’re such bad actresses that you can’t tell.

Bubba Ray Dudley vs. Billy Kidman

D-Von and Paul London are here of course. Bubba goes with the power to start and runs him over with a shoulder. Speeding things up works for a bit for Kidman until he walks into a spinebuster to cut him right back down. A falling headbutt sets up a neck crank as the announcers talk about JBL’s Rocky Challenge later tonight, while making it clear that the Rock is NOT here. Just in case you started to get excited over something JBL related you see. Kidman fights up and hits an enziguri but the seconds distract the referee by mistake, allowing D-Von to break up the shooting star press. The Bubba Bomb is good for the pin.

Rating: D+. I can go with the singles matches to build up the rematch, mainly because there aren’t exactly many other teams for the Dudleys to fight. The cheating finish was fine and the rematch should be good, but it would be smart to have London and Kidman win a match after becoming champions. Even a squash or two.

We recap John Cena’s issues with Angle and Luther Reigns.

Angle is very proud of Booker T. and awards him the US Title…..kind of, as he has to wait to clear it with the Board of Directors. Booker can hold the title tonight though. Funaki says this isn’t fair and Angle doesn’t want to hear it. Angle: “You know what’s not fair? You’re a broadcast journalist and can’t even say broadcast journalist!” Angle fires him.

The Dudleys congratulate Spike on his win and next week they get their own shot at the Tag Team Titles. They take credit for Spike’s success and promise to not interfere next week if Spike doesn’t interfere in D-Von’s match tonight. Spike seems fine with that, until he finds out that D-Von is facing Rey Mysterio. We’re supposed to believe that Rey would be in over his head with D-Von?

Here’s JBL for his Rocky Challenge. He talks about being a great American in Philadelphia and promises to be the champion that Philadelphia needs. Unlike the Philadelphia 76ers, he doesn’t have to go through a metal detector on his way to work. As for the Flyers….well that’s a Canadian sport and he doesn’t watch it. That leaves him with Rocky Balboa and tonight’s Rocky Challenge. JBL calls in a wrestler he has sitting at ringside and if the unnamed wrestler wins, he gets a title shot at Summerslam.

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. ???

Non-title and the unnamed wrestler is future OVW Champion Mike Kruel (listed on the WWE Network but not on commentary). Belly to back suplex, fall away slam, powerbomb, Clothesline From JBL for the pin.

Post match JBL says he doesn’t have an opponent for Summerslam so he’ll just go watch….and here’s the Undertaker. JBL actually stays in place and says he was going to announce his Summerslam title defense against Shannon Moore. He offers to let Undertaker leave but opts to leave himself, only to get chokeslammed. So there’s Summerslam, because that’s the match the world needed to see.

Heidenreich video, which is off the Network version for some reason.

Dawn Marie vs. Torrie Wilson vs. Sable vs. Miss Jackie

One fall to a finish and they all get to disrobe. Hang on though as Angle wheels himself out to say they’re all useless. No one wants to see them wrestle in their lingerie so they’re all fired. I know this is supposed to be a big heel moment but he’s right: what exactly do these women do around here? It’s certainly better than having them try to wrestle.

Rey Mysterio vs. D-Von Dudley

Non-title of course. D-Von hammers him down to start and a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker makes things even worse. Some headbutts to the back set up a chinlock but Rey is right back up with a top rope seated senton. Since it’s Mysterio though, he’s already grabbing his knee. Rey is fine enough for some right hands and a moonsault into a reverse DDT (in one motion as opposed to the AJ Styles version where he stops on his feet in the middle).

D-Von takes him to the apron but his powerbomb is reversed into a hurricanrana to bring it right back inside. Bubba breaks up the 619 though and somehow the referee didn’t see a thing. This brings out London and Kidman to take care of Bubba, with Kidman shoving D-Von off the top as payback from earlier. The 619 into the springboard splash is good for the pin, which Cole calls an upset. I know Rey hadn’t won the World Title yet, but him pinning D-Von in a singles match isn’t an upset.

Rating: D+. Stupid line from Cole at the end aside, there wasn’t much to this one but it was fine as a way for Kidman and London to get back at the Dudleys for earlier. Mysterio vs. Spike seems to be setting up as something interesting next week and while I can’t imagine the Tag Team Titles changing hands, a surprise Cruiserweight Title change isn’t out of the cards.

Raw Rebound.

John Cena vs. Luther Reigns

Cena has thundersticks, which I always thought were cool. Before the match, Cena says that Angle may have stolen his belt but the champ is still here in Philadelphia. Cena talks about Angle’s wife cheating on him with some AA batteries and how Luther is more stuck to Angle than Kurt’s wheelchair. Luther is ready to fight here and the brawl is on in a hurry with Cena being knocked to the floor.

A butterfly suplex has Cena in more trouble and it’s off to the chinlock. The comeback is cut off with a spinebuster but Reigns misses the kneedrop that takes way too long to set up. Cena makes the real comeback with the ProtoPlex into the Shuffle but the referee gets bumped. There’s a DDT and Cena pumps up the shows as Booker T. comes out. The belt shot misses though and Cena steals the fast pin.

Rating: D. This is a match that happened and was little more than a way to help the build towards Cena vs. Booker for the US Title. Reigns is fine in the role as an enforcer but he’s not exactly the best wrestler in the world. Cena is now to the point where he can help carry something like this but it didn’t have the time to go anywhere and Reigns’ offense wasn’t exactly good.

Here’s Angle on a crutch so Eddie can beg him for his job. Eddie has two choices: beg Angle or go beg in the streets. See, this way Eddie doesn’t have to wash windows. Instead, here’s Vince McMahon to interrupt. Vince doesn’t like Angle making people beg for their jobs and grovel like this while pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes. Angle has committed career suicide by messing with Vince because this could cost Vince a humanitarian award since he isn’t employing a handicapped General Manager.

Therefore, Angle needs to resign RIGHT NOW. Kurt swears that he really is handicapped but Vince tells him to get on his feet. Vince kicks the crutch out and Angle is fine, so he’s back on the active roster of wrestlers. He’s going to wrestle, and we’ll make that match at Summerslam against Eddie Guerrero. Cue Eddie (with Vince doing the dance) to smile at Angle and give Vince a ride to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Here’s the big thing about this show: you can see the stories that they’re going for and in this case, the stories are actually decent. The lack of attempted murder helps a lot too. Undertaker vs. JBL sounds pretty weak and while we’re waiting on more matches to be set up for Summerslam, the Eddie vs. Angle match sounds awesome. The show is starting to make sense again and while it’s still not good, Cena is rising up in a hurry and coupling that with an actually interesting heel in Angle should make for a much, much easier show to watch.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

There’s a good chance that you’re a fan of NXT. I mean, if you’re not, I don’t really know what else to tell you. It’s one of the best wrestling TV shows ever and can put on good shows in almost any way you ask. One of the key things is their diversity, which you can see in their main events, especially as of late. Here are the last four TV main events:

December 19 – Johnny Gargano vs. Aleister Black

December 12 – Ricochet vs. Tyler Breeze

December 5 – Shayna Baszler vs. Dakota Kai

November 28 – Lars Sullivan vs. Keith Lee

That’s a cage match with a brutal backstory, an athletic spectacle in the midcard, a hard hitting women’s match and two hosses hitting each other really hard. They’re four very different kinds of matches with eight different people instead of the same thing you see so often on Raw or Smackdown. There isn’t some main event group that dominates most of the shows and commentary treats whatever the main event of the week is as the most important thing in the world. It’s certainly not something unique to NXT, but no other company does it as often or as well.

IMG Credit: Ring of Honor

Ring of Honor
Date: December 19, 2018
Location: Stage AE, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana, Caprice Coleman

So Final Battle has come and gone but around here….actually you know what I’m going to say here so I’m not even going to bother. It’s going to be a stand alone match tonight, but there’s a chance that we’re going to be seeing something Christmas related. That kind of show has been hit or miss in wrestling history but hopefully it works well here. Let’s get to it.

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

Tonight, Jay Lethal and Matt Taven will be captains in the Christmas Surprise ten man tag. They’ll both be opening presents to find out who their partners will be. Lethal is happy but Taven only wants the rest of the Kingdom on his team because he hates surprises. I think you know where this is going.

Opening sequence.

Twisted Sisterz vs. Britt Baker/Madison Rayne

That would be Thunder Rosa and Holidead, who jumped Baker and Rayne at Survival of the Fittest to set this up. Baker is a hometown girl and rather over as you might have guessed. Some early forearms send Rosa outside and Madison hits a dive off the apron to take them both down. Back in and Madison gets a few rollups on Holidead, who them catches her in a belly to back faceplant to take over.

It’s off to a reverse chinlock to slow Rayne down before Rosa comes in to tie her in the Tree of Woe. That means a running dropkick to send us to a break. Back with Rayne still in trouble as Holidead gets two off a neckbreaker. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Rayne jawbreaks her way to freedom. It’s off to Baker for a running knee in the corner, followed by the Sling Blade.

Back to back basement lariats keep Rosa in trouble but Holidead breaks up what looked to be a double neckbreaker. An Irish Curse into a Backstabber into a Downward Spiral into Rosa slamming Holidead (mostly) onto Baker gets two with Rayne making the save. Holidead hits a sweet spinebuster on Baker, who comes back with a ripcord forearm into a cutter from Rayne. That earns Rayne a shot to the face and White Noise into a top rope double stomp to the back finishes Baker at 9:57.

Rating: C. I was worried that they were going to go with the upset by having the thrown together team win, which would have been a horrible idea as the Sisterz are a nice monster team who could go somewhere if there was somewhere to go in this division. Still though, it’s better than nothing and I’ll take what I can get.

Lethal and Taven open some of their names. Jay is rather pleased but Matt complains about a series of Melvins. No names are given.

We look back at Jeff Cobb winning the TV Title.

Lethal is annoyed that he didn’t get Cheeseburger in the drawing but Caprice Coleman gives him one last present….which is of course Cheeseburger. So who got thrown off Lethal’s team? He didn’t have any names left so why would he be convinced that there was no Cheeseburger?

Taven gets one extra name in the form of a stocking and seems happy for once.

Ian and Colt ask Caprice how he knew what was in the box. Coleman says it was just the Christmas spirit.

Team Lethal vs. Team Taven

Jay Lethal, Cheeseburger, Rhett Titus, Vinny Marseglia, Jeff Cobb

Matt Taven, Brian Milonas, Jonathan Gresham, Beer City Bruiser, Marty Scurll

Milonas and Bruiser come in from the bar, as they should. As you might guess, there’s quite an argument over who is starting here. There’s also an argument over the Christmas attire the wrestlers are wearing, because this isn’t quite as serious as some matches. Lethal even tries to engineer a trade with Gresham for Marseglia but that’s against the rules, which are strictly followed around here. The fans give us a MERRY CHRISTMAS chant as Lethal and Gresham start things off.

The technical sequence goes to Gresham but it’s Bruiser tagging himself in because Gresham isn’t willing to cheat. It’s off to Bruiser for a headlock but Lethal speeds things up and takes the skin off his chest with some chops. The hiptoss into the basement dropkick keeps Bruiser in trouble and we take a break.

Back with Taven wanting and receiving Cheeseburger, who comes in with some pushups. Taven immediately tags out to bring in Milonas, but Cheeseburgers is willing to fight for himself. A headlock doesn’t get Cheeseburger very far so he tries speeding things up and jumping over Milonas in the corner until Milonas needs oxygen. Titus comes in without a tag and tries a suplex until Cheeseburger, Milonas and Bruiser suplex Cheeseburger and Titus at the same time. Marseglia isn’t going to be outdone because he brings in an ax to scare Marty.

Someone throws Marty the umbrella, but he opts to tag out to Taven instead. No one will tag either of them though and it’s time for the fight that everyone else in the match wants to see. They hit the ropes a few times before heading outside for the huge brawl. Bruiser goes up top for the huge dive to take everyone out and it’s off to a break.

Back with Lethal superkicking Marseglia out of instinct, bringing Taven in to deck Lethal. A bunch of splashes in the corner have Lethal in trouble, with Taven having to kick Gresham and whip him in. That goes badly for Taven as Lethal starts whipping people into Taven in the corner. Stereo basement dropkicks to Taven set up a German suplex from Cobb. The dog pile cover gets two with Gresham diving over for the save.

Bruiser comes in and turns Lethal inside out with a clothesline. Milonas starts cleaning house but Cobb picks him up, only to have Scull shove him over before the Tour of the Islands can hit. Taven beats up Cheeseburger (this guy’s all right) but gets caught in the Lethal Injection. Cobb suplexes Milonas to a big pop and hits a good Tour of the Islands on Bruiser for the pin at 15:34.

Rating: C+. Cobb is a beast and something like this is going to be on his highlight reel for a long time. This was the kind of match that is a fun way to fill in a show that doesn’t mean much. Even the announcers were talking about how this wasn’t as serious and the interaction between the guys were fine. It’s a good idea for a match and the people had a fun time, which was the point.

Overall Rating: C. Much like the main event, this whole show was little more than a way to fill in a week as we move from Final Battle to the start of the new year. The next two weeks or so are going to be Best Of shows so they might as well have some fun here. I liked the main event and the opener was fine so it served its purpose well enough.

Results

Twisted Sisterz b. Britt Baker/Madison Rayne – Top rope double stomp to Baker

Team Lethal b. Team Taven – Tour of the Islands to Bruiser

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

205 Live
Date: December 19, 2018
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

Well with the most recently title match out of the way, things are starting to get back to normal around here. That doesn’t mean we don’t have anything big planned for tonight though, with a street fight between Akira Tozawa/Brian Kendrick vs. Jack Gallagher/Drew Gulak. Tozawa and Kendrick had a great street fight last year and this has the potential to be incredible as well. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Buddy Murphy retaining the Cruiserweight Title over Cedric Alexander at TLC. This leads into the regular preview of tonight’s show.

Opening sequence.

Here are Hideo Itami and Ariya Daivari for a chat. Daivari is extra serious tonight as he tells everyone to SHUT THEIR MOUTHS and show Hideo respect. He can’t sit idly by while a legend like Itami is ignored around here. Itami hasn’t had any real competition for two months so until that is changed, this show is canceled. Cue Drake Maverick to threaten Daivari with a suspension but Noam Dar interrupts as well. After a quick chat, the match is on. Good thing the McMahons decree has nothing to do with 205 Live. Do they know this show exists?

Noam Dar vs. Hideo Itami

Dar slugs away in the corner to start and hits a running dropkick to send him outside. Back in and Itami takes over with the kicks and drops Dar ribs first onto the top rope. A Fameasser knocks him right back off the ropes for two and we hit the chinlock. Dar gets up and slugs away to block some kicks but can’t fend them all off and gets knocked down again.

The second chinlock goes on but this time Dar is up even faster for a dropkick to the knee. A running shot to the face has Itami in more trouble and a northern lights suplex gets two. Itami misses a running kick and gets his leg kicked out from underneath him, followed by a shot to knock Daivari off the apron. Dar gets sent into the corner for a running dropkick and the spinning knee to the face gives Itami the pin at 6:56.

Rating: C-. I’m not big on either guy here but the match was perfectly fine. They got in some good offense each and Dar has a rematch if he wants one. Itami and Daivari isn’t exactly going to go anywhere but at least they’re doing something other than having Itami yell RESPECT ME over and over, which hasn’t worked and isn’t going to no matter how long they try it.

We look at Murphy retaining over Alexander again.

Murphy talks to Maverick about the times he was supposed to lose and then retained anyway. He wants a special challenger next time so Maverick says give him a few days. The new opponent will be announced next week.

Lio Rush vs. Aaron Solow

Solow is Bayley’s fiance. Lio talks some trash before slugging away but gets taken down with a few right hands. That’s it from Solow, as Rush takes him down and hits the Final Hour. Rush won’t cover though as he hammers away instead, followed by a second Final Hour for the pin at 1:05. Rush almost looked too dominant here as it didn’t even have any impact to have him win that fast.

Alexander is down from his loss but he’s still coming for the title.

Next week is a Best Of show. Makes sense.

Jack Gallagher/Drew Gulak vs. Brian Kendrick/Akira Tozawa

Gallagher and Gulak are both in suits. Kendrick has shaved off his beard and looks to be about 21 years old again. The good guys take over in the aisle and head inside to start the actual fighting. It’s already time for a table because they’re not wasting time this week. Gallagher and Gulak aren’t interested in that though and put the table back underneath the ring, making them even less popular. With that one not being an option, Tozawa and Kendrick take off the top of the announcers’ table and use it to drop both of them.

Gallagher gets punched in the face and Tozawa uses Kendrick as a launch pad for a backsplash. Gulak and Gallagher are right back up with trashcan shots to take over, allowing Gulak to put a can over Tozawa and beat it with a broom. Now it’s time for a mop bucket but first, Gulak needs to hit Kendrick with the mop itself. Kendrick gets in a few shots on Gulak as Gallagher armbars Tozawa inside.

Gulak busts out a bungee cord and fishhooks Kendrick’s mouth in a painful looking visual. A clothesline gives Gulak two as Tozawa is nowhere to be seen. Kendrick counters a double suplex into a double DDT so everyone is down at the same time. With Tozawa on the floor, Gulak goes outside and mocks the AH AH shouts but Tozawa blocks a punch with a chair.

The fans want tables but have to settle for Gulak being tied to the post with the cords for some alternating chops. Gallagher makes a save and brings over one of the announcers’ chairs, with Tozawa being put in it for a running dropkick. Back in and Gallagher gets an Indian deathlock on Kendrick, only to have Tozawa come in with a dragon sleeper.

Gulak makes a save with the Gulock so Kendrick slams Gallagher onto both of them for the break. Gallagher is right back on the knee with another deathlock and thankfully the referee doesn’t break it up for a grab of the rope. The top rope backsplash gives Tozawa a save and a near fall but his suicide dive hits a raised trashcan. That leaves Kendrick to hit a super Sliced Bread #2 to finish Gallagher at 17:01.

Rating: C+. It was good but this never hit the level that you would expect them to reach in a big gimmick match. It’s not exactly an upset either as you would expect Tozawa and Kendrick to be more at home in a street fight. The match was good enough, though I was looking for something a little bit more intense than this.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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