IMG Credit: WWE

Takeover: Chicago II
Date: June 16, 2018
Location: Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

It’s time for a sequel and that means things might not be quite as good as it was before. However, the card looks very strong here with all five matches having the potential to steal the show. The main event will likely be Tommaso Ciampa vs. Johnny Gargano II in a street fight, which is completely different than an unsanctioned match. Let’s get to it.

The opening video focuses on pain, which every match on tonight’s card has felt in one way or another. As you might have guessed, the video shifts into focusing on Gargano vs. Ciampa, which is pretty easily the biggest thing on the card.

The announcers welcome Joseph for the night as Mauro Ranallo is off covering Showtime Boxing.

Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era vs. Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan

Roderick Strong and Kyle O’Reilly are defending and have Adam Cole in their corner. The fans are behind the champs here (well duh) as Strong headlocks Lorcan to start. It’s off to O’Reilly for a headlock takeover and some right hands to Burch’s head but Burch easily wins a slugout. Everything breaks down and Kyle gets suplexed onto Strong before the champs are sent to the floor.

That’s enough for the hot tag off to Lorcan and it’s time for the running uppercuts. Lorcan nails a big running dive over the top and alternates chops to both champs. The double elevated DDT gets two on Strong but a Doomsday Device is broken up with Lorcan being shoved hard onto the apron. O’Reilly scores with an enziguri on Burch and the cross armbreaker goes on. Somehow that’s rolled over so Burch can grab a rope and the fans are NOT happy that he survived. Geez guys give the bald guys a chance.

The High/Low is broken up and Lorcan is back up with a double Blockbuster off the apron. Now the Doomsday Uppercut gets two as Cole pulls Strong out at the last second. That means an ejection and the fans now hate the referee too. Strong saves another elevated DDT but Lorcan suplexes his way out of a guillotine choke.

A blind tag brings Strong back in so Lorcan powerbombs him down as the referee tells them they have one minute left. The champs get caught in a double submission with O’Reilly having to kick Lorcan off a half crab to break up Burch’s Crossface. A slugout actually goes to the champs and the High/Low ends Lorcan at 15:59.

Rating: B. This was getting close to the great level and that’s a very solid place for an opener. They were also smart to let the fans cheer for the Undisputed Era early on as you know they’re going to be the most popular guys on the card all night long. Burch and Lorcan looked great here and they might have their day later on. This was all it needed to be though and you can probably have War Raiders waiting on the champs in Brooklyn.

With the champs gone, Lorcan and Burch get the standing ovation.

Kairi Sane is here.

We recap the Velveteen Dream vs. Ricochet. The idea here is Ricochet gets a lot of attention due to being an athletic freak and it’s not cool with Dream that someone else is getting this kind of attention. Dream has said that anything Ricochet can do, he can do better. This caused Ricochet to hit a big flip dive the top to the ramp, leaving Dream speechless.

Velveteen Dream vs. Ricochet

Dream is in full Hogan gear, with bandanna and a DREAM STILL OVER shirt, plus all the mannerisms, including the posing and swinging his arms back and forth. I saw Dream at a house show earlier this week and he was doing some Hogan offense so suddenly this makes a lot more sense. He also has some tights on that look a lot like Ricochet’s Prince Puma gear from Lucha Underground. Ricochet on the other hand now has full on superhero gear, complete with a cape designed to look like wings. The fans are behind Dream here and seem rather pleased when he strikes his pose.

They hit the mat with Ricochet grabbing a headscissors, making Dream lose his bandanna in the process. Dream’s running headscissors doesn’t work as Ricochet lands on his feet, meaning it’s time to start the flips. Ricochet flips off the ropes and moonsaults into his pose, frustrating Dream all over again. A springboard is broken up though and Ricochet lands throat first on the top rope to really cut him off. Back in and Dream drops him throat first across the ropes again, followed by a slow motion slingshot flip splash. A hip swivel neckbreaker gives Dream two and he wants the Bingo hall guy to get up.

Ricochet gets sent to the floor and a running springboard flip dive drops him again. Back in again and a chinlock doesn’t get Dream very far as the chant switches to BOTH THESE GUYS. Ricochet fights up and scores with a suicide dive, followed by a spinning flip dive over the top to really wake the fans up. The springboard back elbow and standing shooting star gives Ricochet two but he gets crotched on top. That means a super Death Valley Bomb for a very near fall as Dream was banged up off the landing.

Ricochet heads up again but this time it’s Dream suplexing him off the top and out to the floor in a very painful looking crash. The fans are VERY pleased and it’s even better when both guys dive back in at nine. Another Death Valley Bomb gives Dream a close two but his snap DDT is broken up. Ricochet’s back gives out on a suplex attempt so they trade kicks to the face instead. Now the DDT gives Dream two and the fans give both downed guys a standing ovation.

Dream says that he’s homegrown and Ricochet belongs in a Bingo hall so Ricochet comes back with a Death Valley Bomb of his own. Ricochet goes up, strikes Dream’s pose, and hits the Purple Rainmaker for a very close two. With Dream still rocked, Ricochet goes up for one of the longest shooting stars I’ve ever seen but it only hits knees. Ricochet is down in the other corner so Dream tries a Coast to Coast Purple Rainmaker but only hits mat (though he more than had the distance). The 630 gives Ricochet the pin at 22:18.

Rating: A. Can we get Dream a statue already? For someone who came over from Tough Enough, I don’t remember the last time he didn’t knock a big match out of the park. Throw in the great gear and story being told here of Dream doing everything Ricochet could do until he made the same mistake in the end and he’s just amazing. Ricochet shows that he could do more than fly too, which is a positive sign for someone so known for one style. Great match and another star making performance for both guys.

We recap Shayna Baszler vs. Nikki Cross. Baszler took over the division by being a bully who broke all the rules. She bullies Dakota Kai so the insane Cross came to Kai’s defense and showed Baszler what it really meant to break the rules. Cross is just so out there that Baszler might not be able to handle her.

Women’s Title: Nikki Cross vs. Shayna Baszler

Baszler is defending. Shayna has her fists up to start but Cross stands there with her arms at her side. Cross tells Baszler to do it, motioning for the Kirifuda Clutch. Then she gets down on all fours to chase Baszler around and the champ is confused. Cross turns her back and offers a free chance, only to cut Baszler off with a growl. The first choke has Baszler in trouble and Cross ties her up in the ring skirt for some forearms to the back.

They fight on the ramp and this time Baszler drops her back first to slow Cross down for the first time. Back in and Baszler tries to smother Cross so Nikki comes up smiling. Well of course she does. The crowd is distracted by something as Baszler knees her in the face, only to have Cross block the second one.

The Clutch is reversed with a belly to back suplex and Cross kicks away in the corner. A layout reverse DDT (not the Slop Drop Nigel) on the apron gives Cross two and a handing swinging suplex gets the same. Shayna reverses another suplex into the Clutch and Cross is in trouble in the middle of the ring. Cross fights a lot but starts smiling before passing out at 9:26.

Rating: B-. Well that was disturbing, though completely the right way to go. Cross is so completely insane that it makes sense for her to enjoy being choked out in a loss. It was straight out of Raven vs. Chris Benoit at Souled Out 1998 and that’s what I was hoping to see coming into this. Not a great match, but I’m curious to see who goes after Baszler next as the division is absolutely stacked right now.

EC3 is here.

Keith Lee (making his debut) is here.

We recap the NXT Title match. This is a pretty basic idea as champion Aleister Black has been able to take care of anyone with Black Mass but Lars Sullivan is too strong for it to have much effect. Sullivan has dominated him for the most part and Black has to find a way to survive.

NXT Title: Aleister Black vs. Lars Sullivan

Black is defending and gets to do his rising up entrance. They stare each other down for a good while to start until Black starts in with the strikes. Both finishers are blocked early on so Black knocks him to the floor for a running forearm. Black comes off the apron with a Meteora but gets his head knocked off back inside. A running knee to the head gives Black one and it’s off to a Fujiwara armbar as they slow things down a bit. Black’s right hand is twisted around and a clothesline only hurts Black’s arm.

They head outside again and Sullivan catches Black’s middle rope moonsault (egads) and drops him face first onto the apron. Back in and we hit the chinlock to give them their first actual break. Black escapes a pop up powerslam but his rollup is countered into a World’s Strongest Slam for two. Now the pop up powerslam gets two more so Sullivan goes up, which can’t end well. Black kicks him in the head so Sullivan just smacks him in the face to put Black back down.

The top rope headbutt hits a raised knee, which thankfully hurts Black’s knee. I’ve never gotten why raising your knees doesn’t cause you damage right back so it’s nice to see for a change. Black’s knee is fine enough to speed up the strikes and the standing Lionsault gives the champ a near fall of his own. Black Mass is blocked again so Sullivan goes after the knee again. We hit a Brock Lock for a good while until the Freak Accident is countered into a DDT for a double knockdown.

Sullivan is up first and gets two more off the top rope headbutt. Black avoids a charge and stomps on the back but misses Black Mass by a good six inches. That gets two anyway, but no reaction as they couldn’t hide how off that was. Another jumping knee to the face sets up Black Mass (to the arm) but Sullivan gets up anyway. With Sullivan on his knees, Black Mass catches him on the top of the head to retain Black’s title at 14:29.

Rating: B+. Missed Black Masses aside, this was a heck of a fight with Black throwing everything he had at the monster in something close enough to Vader vs. Sting to be the classic formula. Just having Black go at him that hard and finally pull it off in the end was the right call and Sullivan can be back with some dominant squashes so he’ll be fine. This is a classic story and it’s always going to work if you can make the fans get behind the underdog, even if that’s the champion.

We recap Tommaso Ciampa vs. Johnny Gargano. They used to be best friends but last year, in this building, Ciampa stabbed him in the back out of jealousy. Gargano defeated Ciampa in an incredible unsanctioned match in New Orleans but Ciampa couldn’t let it die. Therefore, more attacks ensued and it’s time for a street fight rematch. The other important note is Johnny’s wife Candice LeRae, who got caught in the cross hairs and doesn’t approve of Johnny being in the fight again.

Gargano is walking through the back when Candice comes up to him and gives Johnny the broken crutch from New Orleans. Candice: “Kick his a**!”

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Johnny Gargano

Street fight. Ciampa has his own crutch and they’re both in street clothes. They swing the crutches at each other to start before just going with the punches. They’re on the floor in a hurry with Gargano throwing him over the announcers’ table and then fighting into the crowd. Gargano finds a USE THIS SIGN JOHNNY and bashes Ciampa in the head with it, revealing a stop sign inside. A high crossbody off a platform crushes Ciampa again and it’s time to go back to ringside with Gargano throwing some weapons inside.

Ciampa shrugs off the left hands for some rolling German suplexes to work on Gargano’s bad neck. Gargano knocks him to the floor again and scores with a suicide dive. A whip into the barricade gets Ciampa out of trouble and it’s time for a chair and a trashcan lid. The chair gets wrapped around Gargano’s head and Ciampa sends it straight into the steps. Ciampa pelts the trashcan at his head and Johnny is bleeding from the hand. It’s handcuffs time and you can tell the fans are nervous about where this is going.

Ciampa can’t get them on so Gargano goes with the slingshot spear instead. Gargano takes his belt off and gives Ciampa the whipping that he deserves. The trashcan goes over Ciampa’s head for the low superkick but of course it’s too early for a cover. Instead Gargano puts the trashcan in the corner, allowing Ciampa to hit Project Ciampa. The knee to the face gets two and a running knee into a trashcan lid into Gargano’s head knocks him even sillier. They head to the apron and White Noise onto the steps gives Ciampa another close two.

We need more weapons so Ciampa pulls out….bolt cutters? He starts cutting the ropes that hold the mat to the bottom of the ring and pulls the canvas and mat away, revealing the plywood. Ciampa puts him on the top and tells Gargano that he deserves this, but a super White Noise is countered. Gargano can’t get a sunset bomb, even as he pulls Ciampa’s pants half down. Instead he settles for a superkick to bring Ciampa back down and it’s time for a slugout.

Ciampa hits a crutch shot while Gargano gets in a trashcan lid shot, knocking them both down at the same time with Gargano falling on top for two. Gargano tries a slingshot dive but goes straight into a trashcan lid shot to the head. The running knee (the bad one mind you) hits the steps and Ciampa is in trouble again. He takes the brace off so Gargano hammers away at the knee, even beating on it with a chair. Ciampa is fine enough to kick Gargano into the chair in the corner and the Gargano Escape has Gargano in big trouble.

That’s let go as Ciampa wants the STF with a crutch like Gargano used in New Orleans. With that not working either, Ciampa fixes his knee brace as Gargano is getting to his feet. A crutch shot to the back of the neck only gets two and Ciampa is getting even madder. Gargano is almost out on his feet so Ciampa takes him up the ramp while shouting about how they used to be friends. It’s time for Gargano to say goodbye to everything and Ciampa sends him into the set, just like he did last year.

Ciampa says it’s never enough and takes him on top of some equipment, above a pair of tables. He even takes off Gargano’s wedding ring, spits on it, and throws it away. That fires Gargano up enough to hit his own White Noise through the tables and they’re both done. Fans: “MAMA MIA!” Medics come out to put a neck brace on Ciampa as Gargano sits from above and watches the stretcher come out. The fans tell Gargano to DO IT but he just watches as Ciampa is put on a table.

Gargano looks at his ring finger and that’s enough to send him after Ciampa again. He wheels Ciampa back down to ringside and slaps on the Gargano Escape for the tap but there’s no referee. Instead Gargano beats up some guys in suits for trying to make a save and cuffs Ciampa’s hands behind his back. Six straight superkicks set up another Gargano Escape so here are a bunch of guys to break it up. The referee is finally back as Gargano beats up the suits, but Ciampa catches him with a hanging DDT onto the exposed boards for the pin at 35:22.

Rating: A+. That ending was sick with the thud being as cringe inducing of a sound as I’ve heard in a long time. Ciampa winning was the right call of course and it was an incredible fight until we got there. The first match was more about just having the two of them hit each other as much as they could but this was all about the violence and the weapons, with Gargano going so far over the line that he got caught in the end, which adds another layer to the story. I have no idea what they have planned for the final match, but they’ve got their work cut out for them.

The fans are STUNNED at the ending and you can feel the air go out of the place. Ciampa can barely move but gives an evil smile as he pulls himself up the aisle using the stretcher. He waves goodbye to Gargano as the fans swear at him a lot to end the show.

Overall Rating: A+. The two creepy smiles carry this one as far as it needs to go and the matches were as great as they could have been. This was much more about the violence and the action and that’s exactly what we got all night long. It’s another incredible show as NXT had its foot on the gas all night long. I know I keep saying they can’t get better than this, but I’m getting tired of being wrong. Bring on Brooklyn, as things might even be better there if that’s possible. Another incredible show, as you kind of have to expect.

Results

Undisputed Era b. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch – High/Low to Lorcan

Ricochet b. Velveteen Dream – 630 Splash

Shayna Baszler b. Nikki Cross – Kirifuda Clutch

Aleister Black b. Lars Sullivan – Black Mass

Tommaso Ciampa b. Johnny Gargano – Hanging DDT

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: January 15, 2004
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Connecticut
Attendance: 6,000
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

With less than two weeks to go before the Royal Rumble, it’s still the Hardcore Holly Show around here. Thankfully there’s some other stuff going on to balance it out, but he’s an anchor on the momentum that the show could have. Other than that though we have Chris Benoit and John Cena having rockets strapped to their backs, which could be very entertaining. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Paul Heyman is in the ring to start things off and talks about how important gambling is here. There can only be fifteen Smackdown superstars in the Royal Rumble so tonight, only the winners get into the match. This brings out John Cena, whose presence has Heyman’s mouth hanging open. Cena gets in his various insults and promises to bounce Heyman faster than an ECW check. Tazz: “I’ve had one of those. They suck.” Cena asks the fans what they want to see and loads up the FU but Rhyno comes in for the save. Rhyno Gores him and Heyman promises that tonight will be a night that Cena never forgets.

Jamie Noble vs. Tajiri

Rescheduled from last week when Jamie was nowhere to be found and Nidia had to take his place. The winner gets Rey Mysterio, on commentary, for the Cruiserweight Title at the Royal Rumble. Tajiri wastes no time in firing off the kicks to take over and some kicks in the corner get two. Tazz of course isn’t all that interested as he would rather accuse Rey of staring at Nidia. A neckbreaker gets Noble out of trouble and we hit the USA chant.

The ever patriotic Noble runs him over but Tajiri kicks him in the head to stop the momentum. For some reason Tajiri goes up but misses a middle rope legdrop, only to have Akio and Sakoda go after Nidia. Noble and Mysterio run over for the save so Noble sends him into the barricade. Tajiri loads up a dive but Noble pulls Nidia in his way, setting up the tiger bomb back inside to send Noble to the Rumble. But wait, shouldn’t that put him in the Royal Rumble too, following Heyman’s orders earlier tonight? I know there’s another prize there but that needs to be explained a bit better.

Rating: C-. This didn’t work very well with too much going on in a three minute match. Tazz’s constant accusations of Mysterio wanting Nidia didn’t help much either as it just was more annoying than interesting. As a bonus, Nidia continues to be the stupidest person in wrestling. We’re supposed to believe that no one has told her about this in the month or so this story has been going? She’s never heard the commentary on a show where the announcers are calling the show? I’d hope we get somewhere with this at the Rumble as it needs to end already.

We look back at the opening segment.

Here’s Heyman, standing on the elevated part of the set, to say Cena is corrupting the youth of America. Therefore, tonight it’s Cena vs. Rhyno in a Wash Your Mouth Out With Soap match with Cena’s mouth against Heyman’s mouth.

We look back at Hardcore Holly attacking Big Show last week.

Brock Lesnar and Show, in a neck brace are in the back and it’s restraining order time. Holly can’t come within fifty feet of Show and Lesnar is standing by his side all night. I get that they’re trying with Holly but it just makes me shake my head more every week.

We recap the split of Los Guerreros in a great angle.

Kurt Angle comes in to see Eddie Guerrero and insists that he was only trying to help. Apparently Chavo Sr. will be here tonight to apologize for Chavo, who Eddie will be facing at the Rumble. Therefore, neither can be in the Rumble. That’s not cool with Eddie, who rants about not wanting to fight his family. Beating up his nephew would be like taking out his own heart. It’s about respect, not revenge.

Tag Team Titles: Basham Brothers vs. Rikishi/Scotty 2 Hotty

The Bashams are defending. And hang on a second as Dawn Marie comes out to announce that this is now Rikishi vs. Scotty with the winner getting in the Rumble. So when he said the winners tonight will get you into the Rumble, he only meant some of them. That’s more clarification than we had earlier.

Rikishi vs. Scotty 2 Hotty

They stare at each other a lot until Scotty annoys Rikishi (imagine that) and some smacks to the head knock Scotty silly. The Samoan drop is escaped so Rikishi superkicks him down, setting up the Rump Shaker for the quick pin.

Video on recent house shows. A little research finds that those shows were main evented by Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero vs. A-Train (and occasionally with Tajiri included as well) for the Cruiserweight Title. That certainly does sound like a great time.

Basham Brothers vs. World’s Greatest Tag Team

Non-title, as announced by Tazz. However, the winners are in the Rumble. Danny runs Haas over to start but gets taken to the mat without much effort. Shelton comes in for a heck of a t-bone suplex on Doug with Danny having to make a save. That means a trip to the floor where Shaniqua offers a distraction, allowing the Bashams to hit a double baseball slide to take over.

Back in and Shelton gets beaten down as he and Haas are the default faces, which doesn’t quite work for them. Shelton ducks a clothesline and makes the hot (minus the heat) tag to Haas to clean house. Everything breaks down and Shelton gets in a superkick, allowing Haas to roll Danny up for the pin.

Rating: D. And I’m sure Haas and Benjamin will be announced for a title shot soon after pinning the champions clean. This was a weird choice for the sake of a qualifying match and it really didn’t work. Haas and Benjamin are the less heelish of the two teams but it’s not like the fans were going to cheer them anyway. It got the right team into the Rumble but that’s about all it got right.

Here’s Chavo Sr. to apologize for his son. He understands why he’s being booed with what is going on with his family. Chavo is here tonight to say that he is ashamed of his son and he wants an apology to Eddie. This brings out Eddie, who thinks it’s a setup. Chavo says he’s out here on his own behalf but that’s not cool with Eddie, who doesn’t think this is enough.

Eddie calms down and says his anger isn’t towards his brother but towards Chavo Jr. Is that how Chavo raised his son? Eddie doesn’t understand this so here’s Chavo Jr. as well. As you probably guessed, the double teaming is on and Eddie gets laid out. Cole thinks this MIGHT have been a setup, because being lead commentator makes him a little slow. Angle runs in for the save.

The FBI comes out for a six man tag but that’s another changed match as we now have a three man battle royal for a Royal Rumble spot.

Nunzio vs. Chuck Palumbo vs. Johnny Stamboli

Nunzio tells them to get out so he can win, eventually screaming in their faces to do so. Palumbo teases leaving but punches Nunzio in the face instead. The big guys fight in the corner until Palumbo knocks Nunzio silly. A buckle bomb rocks Nunzio and Palumbo kicks Stamboli out, only to be dumped by Nunzio for the win in short order.

Post match Nunzio tries to explain while Stamboli falls down.

Eddie is going Chavo hunting but finds Angle instead. Things get very intense but Angle doesn’t want to fight. Eddie wants to beat up Chavo Jr. instead.

Big Show vs. Funaki

Non-title but a Royal Rumble qualifier with Show in his neck brace. Chops, hiptoss, Hardcore Holly comes out for a failed distraction, a right hand puts Show in the Rumble.

Heyman gives Rhyno a pep talk. He needs to do this for AMERICA, because Cena is poisoning the youth’s minds! Heyman wants the old Rhyno back.

The #2 Billy Gunn moment: winning the 1999 King of the Ring. Over X-Pac, because Gunn vs. Road Dogg in the finals was too complicated for Vince Russo.

John Cena vs. Rhyno

Cena’s mouth getting soaped out vs. Heyman’s mouth getting soaped out. Before the match, Heyman tells the referee to DQ Cena at the slightest indiscretion. Rhyno on the other hand can’t be counted out or disqualified, called ECW rules. Cena slides in and gets knocked right back to the floor. The second attempt works a bit better with some clotheslines putting Rhyno outside this time.

Back in again and Cena tosses him a second time but Rhyno comes back in with a kendo stick. A few shots have Cena in trouble and they head outside for the fourth time combined, which suggests that this is going to go on for a very long time. Rhyno chairs him down for two more and the chair is wedged in the corner for good measure. Of course Rhyno gets whipped into the chair because that’s what happens when you put one in the corner.

Cena scores with the Throwback and the top rope elbow to the neck has Rhyno in more trouble. Heyman comes in with a low blow to block the FU though and they’re both down again. The Gore misses so they head outside again, this time with Rhyno loading up a table. Back from a break with Cena being slammed onto the unfolded table but he rolls away from a top rope splash. The table is set in the corner but first, Rhyno has to hit a spinebuster for two. The missed Gore sends Rhyno through the table (which explodes) and the FU gives Cena the pin.

Rating: D. For a match that wasn’t exactly in doubt, this went on a lot longer than it should have. The stipulation was a nice idea and could have been done better with a bigger name against Cena but this didn’t work very well. Cut this down in about half and you have something much better but the seventeen minutes it got went too long.

Heyman tries to run but Chris Benoit cuts him off. Some kendo stick shots from Heyman just annoy Benoit, who takes Heyman down with ease. As Heyman screams for help, Benoit puts on the Sharpshooter. Cena grabs a mic and says this was all Heyman’s idea so it’s soap time. Hang on though, as Cena has an idea. Heyman is in pain, but Cena can make it worse by saying CHRIS, which causes the hold to be pulled on even harder. Heyman won’t lick the soap so that means CHRIS.

They try it again and Heyman screams, earning him some soap in the mouth. Heyman promises to make Cena miserable and makes threats of Vince McMahon’s authority. Cena: “He’s got a point but I’ve got a better one. CHRIS!” That means more soap for Heyman, who starts apologizing to Benoit. Cena: “That sounded like he said CHRIS!” Heyman: “FU! FU! FU!” Cena: “CHRIS!” More soap and more cranking knocks Heyman out to end the show. At least this was a fun way to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. Well, they did something to advance towards the Rumble and Holly was kept to a near minimum tonight, but the show still came off as flat. Having a bunch of short qualifying matches for the Rumble didn’t so much get me excited for the show as much as it showed me how weak the Smackdown roster is after the top names. The ending segment was completely fine though and it helped boost the show up a little bit.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

I took in the NXT house show last night in the Broadbent Arena in Louisville, Kentucky. The arena isn’t the biggest in the world with a capacity of 6,600. It was cut in half for the sake of the show and the seats off the floor were mostly empty. The floor was full, but the arena still didn’t look great and the lights were kept low all night. I’m not great at judging attendances but there couldn’t have been more than a thousand people there at the very most.

Unfortunately there was a bad wreck on the interstate and traffic caused me to arrive twenty minutes after the show started as it took forty five minutes to drive about three miles. Therefore, I missed the opening two matches, which included:

1. War Raiders b. TM61

2. EC3 b. Fabian Aichner

I arrived just at the end of the EC3 match and could hear the bell on the way to my seat.

3. Kairi Sane/Candice LeRae b. Aliyah/Vanessa Borne – Insane Elbow to Aliyah. 11:44. C.

The crowd was very hot for this with LeRae getting a strong CANDICE WRESTLING chant but they got even hotter for Sane, who came off like a major star. If nothing else she has a great entrance with the pirate motif working very well. This was a longer match than I was expecting with a lengthy heat segment on LeRae. It was also very formula based with LeRae and Sane taking over to start until LeRae got beaten down for several minutes. The hot tag brought in Sane and LeRae cut Borne off, leaving Sane to win with the elbow. Aliyah is rather enjoyable as a heel but I was a fan of hers for a long time. Maybe it’s the right move.

4. North American Title: Adam Cole b. Raul Mendoza – Last Shot. 11:52. B-.

This was probably the match of the night with Cole getting to show off a lot of what made him popular in the first place and Mendoza getting a little chance to shine. The bigger problem was Cole vs. the crowd, as they were cheering loudly for nearly every single thing that he did. Cole tried everything he could to get them to boo him, from not throwing his shirt to the crowd after seeing which side could make the most noise to running the ropes several times before stopping for a chinlock. The latter just earned him a HOLY S*** chant for a funny moment.

Mendoza got to show off as well here, and it’s clear that he has some talent. There’s always room for a high flier who can make a spirited comeback and that’s what Mendoza got to do here. Of course Cole retained in the end with the Last Shot and the fans were very, very pleased, but Mendoza gave a more than respectable showing of himself and hopefully someone was paying attention.

5. Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era b. Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan – High/Low to Lorcan. 13:30. C+.

It’s always cool to see a dress rehearsal for an upcoming Takeover match and we got to see three of them in one night. Lorcan and Burch were game challengers here and did what they could, but the match never kicked into the higher gear that you might expect it to. What we got was certainly fun though and the Era continues to look more and more like a polished team every time they’re out there. All those years in Ring of Honor are paying off and it makes for a useful situation. Not a bad match, but I’d hope for more on Saturday.

There was actually a post match angle which wound up on WWE’s YouTube channel:

Velveteen Dream got a quick promo on the video screen, saying that it didn’t matter if you were a Louisville Cardinals or Kentucky Wildcats fan, you all sucked. While he wanted to fight Ricochet, he’ll have to settle for beating someone else up tonight as Ricochet is being held out due to injury (not mentioned).

Twenty minute intermission. At the end a fan got to play the What Happens Next game and won a Raw: The First 25 Years book.

6. Velveteen Dream b. Kassius Ohno – Purple Rainmaker. 13:47. C.

Now this was a weird one, mainly for one place. First of all, the fans loved Dream, giving him one of the biggest reactions of the night. The match was about all you would expect, with Ohno hitting him really hard (and loud) and Dream doing all his shenanigans to try and play some mind games. The first odd moment was near the beginning, when it turned into a very random Hulk Hogan tribute match. Ohno knocked Dream down and did the hand to the ear to all four ropes but missed a legdrop. Dream hit one of his own, then dropped two elbows before raking Ohno’s eyes with his boot in another Hogan trademark.

Ohno did hit a Hero’s Welcome (a rolling cutter, which he shouted by name before hitting it) and did all of his other usual stuff. He also banged up Dream’s knee but Dream was perfectly fine enough to hit the elbow for the pin. That’s exactly the kind of thing Ohno is great at: making someone else look good and then taking the loss which doesn’t do him any real damage.

Post match Dream told everyone to buy the Network so they could see him do this again on Saturday. Ricochet came out and said that he wanted to see Dream take the spotlight, so let’s see a flip. Dream played to the crowd a lot and loaded one up but Ricochet came in and scared him off. After being chased off, Dream said that Saturday will be a one star match and that one star was him. As he was leaving, Dream said if you wanted to see him do a flip, it would be 9.99. Ricochet said nothing was going to stop him from being in Kentucky and nothing would stop him from being in Chicago to punch Dream in the face.

7. Women’s Title: Shayna Baszler b. Nikki Cross – Kirifuda Clutch. 9:21. C.

This was about one thing: Cross is a psycho who messes with Baszler’s mind. There really is something to be said about how nuts she comes across as, which adds a lot of fun to her character. Baszler tried to use her skills and work her over but Cross kept going nuts and throwing Baszler off. In the end, Baszler got the Clutch for the knockout, but Cross didn’t tap in a smart move. She’s not the kind of person to tap out and they went with the more appropriate passing out, hopefully with a smile on her face at the time.

8. Aleister Black b. Lars Sullivan via DQ when Sullivan shoved the referee. 13:20. C+.

Black was in more of a traditional face mode here as he wasted no time in throwing all of his strikes at Sullivan. This included a few kicks to knock Sullivan to the floor but a moonsault got caught in midair. Sullivan worked on the leg to take away the kicks but the Freak Accident was countered into a DDT. He beat on Black some more but couldn’t put him away, eventually grabbing a chair instead, leading to shoving the referee down for the DQ. I’d assume an actual finish in Chicago, but this was energetic while it lasted and they worked well enough together. Black kicked the chair into his face post match to end the night.

Overall, this was your run of the mill NXT house show. It wasn’t great and for the most part, none of the matches really jumped off the page at me. However, it did a good job of making me want to see Takeover on Saturday and really that’s what these shows are for: to get you to want to see the bigger events. Most of the big names were there and if Ricochet had been healthy, I would have gotten to see four of the five matches on Saturday’s card. I had a good time and counting parking, the whole night was only $30. It was a fun time and if you like NXT, you’ll have a good time going to one of the shows.

IMG Credit: WWE

It’s time, once again, for everybody to come aboard the Takeover train. We’re back in Chicago for the second year in a row and hopefully we get a match that matches last year’s Tyler Bate vs. Pete Dunne for the United Kingdom Title. The card looks solid this time around and there’s a chance that it lives up to the hype. It’s the usual five match card and that has worked very well for NXT in the past. Let’s get to it.

Ricochet vs. Velveteen Dream

We’ll start with one that could go either way. Dream is one of the few times where WWE has built someone from the ground up and he plays the gimmick as perfectly as anyone could have possibly done. At the same time though, you have Ricochet who is still pretty new (his first on screen appearance for NXT was only back in January with his in-ring debut two months ago). The idea here is a fight over the spotlight with Dream saying he can do anything better than Ricochet, earning himself a heck of a shutting up with Ricochet’s flip over the ropes to the floor.

You could go either way here but I can’t imagine Ricochet losing this time. While Dream needs a big win at some point, he has the kind of gimmick that can bounce back from a single loss. Ricochet on the other hand is newer and hasn’t had a major win during his short time with the promotion. Ricochet wins here with some kind of impressive flip to take the spotlight from Dream, who moves on to his next obsession and probably gets the big win there. Either way, they’re both going to be fine for different reasons each.

Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era(c) vs. Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan

This one feels more like more of a foregone conclusion and that’s just fine. The Undisputed Era has held the titles since January (albeit with Roderick Strong coming in as a replacement for the injured Bobby Fish with Adam Cole defending the titles during a major match as well) and could hold them for a very long time. Burch and Lorcan are fine for a pretty thrown together team but they’re still going to be able to go after the titles in a short term yet well done story.

In case it’s not clear, I’ll take the champions to retain here, albeit in a good match. You can have Burch and Lorcan get very close but ultimately fall to the better team, which is going to enhance the champions and give Burch and Lorcan a boost at the same time. They can continue to be a team if necessary and feud with some of the other teams in the division. Maybe they’ll get back to the titles later, but for now they’re just going to put the Undisputed Era over and that’s perfectly fine.

Women’s Title: Shayna Baszler(c) vs. Nikki Cross

Now this one actually interests me as we have two women who break the rules in entirely different ways. The big idea here is that Baszler has gone after Dakota Kai but now Cross has come in and stood up for Kai while also being just crazy enough that she throws Baszler off. The idea here is Baszler broke the rules to get here but Cross breaks the rules of being a sane and rational human being.

I’m going with Baszler to retain here as Cross certainly doesn’t need the title to get over as a star (though I’d be very curious to see how she acted as the champion). Baszler is the kind of champion where you need someone to be built up over time and slay the dragon who cheated her way through the system to get to the title. This should be a heck of a fight and I’m hoping it ends with Cross smiling and laughing ala Raven at Souled Out 1998 as she passes out. It wouldn’t make sense to have her tap and Baszler should be disturbed by what she sees, which is all you need to sell the story.

Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Oh dear. Oh dear indeed. I’m not sure on having this one happen again so soon but there’s a little more to it than that. First of all, there’s the problem that the first match was one of the best matches NXT has ever done. It was unsanctioned and I’m not sure how different that’s going to be than a street fight. They’ve added some extra stuff here with Candice LeRae not approving of what Gargano does, and you can almost guarantee that it’s going to factor into the finish.

I’m going to take Ciampa here, likely setting up a third match between the two for the big blowoff. I’d have LeRae cost Gargano the match, albeit not having her change sides or anything of course. LeRae can come out and beg Gargano to stop or something and Ciampa can get the win as a result as she wants to have her husband back and is trying to appeal to the last of his humanity. The final match can see LeRae backing Gargano one more time so he can slay Ciampa once and for all, likely in Brooklyn. But yeah, Ciampa wins here, setting up the third and final match in the war.

NXT Title: Aleister Black(c) vs. Lars Sullivan

This one is similar to the Tag Team Title match as Sullivan might not be the most likely option to win the title but it’s not like it would be the biggest shock in the world. Black is in a weird place as he’s kind of just off to the side while Gargano and Ciampa have the top feud in the promotion. I’m still not sure he needed to win the title yet, especially as we’re more than two months into Andrade Cien Almas moving up to the main roster and he still hasn’t had a major match yet. Did they really need to have Black get the title at this point?

I’ll go with Black to retain though, even if he doesn’t manage to hit Black Mass. There are other things they could do, like have Sullivan get annoyed and throw the ref down for a DQ (not really an NXT way to finish things) or just keep beating on Black until he gets disqualified. Either way, I think Back retains the title and they’ll do something else between these two later on, which is about as good as anything else they can do until we get a better challenger build up for Black. The match will be fine with a fired up Black fighting a gorilla but it’s going to take something special to blow the roof off.

Overall Thoughts

Overall….I think I actually have some more confidence in this one than I do in most Takeovers. Nothing on the card looks bad and there’s a good chance that all of them live up to the hype (save for maybe Gargano vs. Ciampa, which is fighting an uphill battle). Takeover has yet to really disappoint me and I have no reason to believe that this will be anything more than very entertaining. Ricochet and Dream could steal the night, but on a show where everyone is trying to do just that, it’s a little easier said than done.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: June 14, 2018
Location: Verizon Arena, Little Rock, Arkansas
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness

It’s the recap show for the final week before Money in the Bank and I’m really not sure what to think of something like that. This wasn’t the strongest week in WWE and that means it could go a few ways. There were more highlights this week than last but that’s not exactly a high bar to clear. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Titus Worldwide vs. Ascension

Titus and Viktor start things off with the loud chop in the corner rocking Viktor. It’s off to Konnor and Apollo with the pace actually picking up a bit. Konnor shoulders him down and we hit the chinlock so let’s talk about Ronda Rousey for some reason. Viktor comes back in for a chinlock of his own but Crews fights up and makes the hot tag off to Titus. Everything breaks down and the Clash of the Titus ends Viktor at 5:37.

Rating: D. So remember when the Ascension was part of the Breezango deal and that was cool for a few weeks? Well WWE certainly doesn’t as neither team has done anything of note for a long time. But hey, we get the B Team and the thrown together Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt team while the teams that did their entertaining stuff for months are forgotten again because….well….oh year we needed more of the Bar and various other teams we’ve done before.

From Raw.

Alexa Bliss vs. Natalya vs. Ember Moon vs. Sasha Banks

Sasha flips onto Natalya but Moon hits a SCARY suicide dive to drive Banks into the barricade. Bliss steals the near fall and we take a break. Back with Bliss clearing the ring and working on Natalya’s knee until Banks comes back in for some clotheslines. Moon is back in for some knees to the face but Bliss gives her a Code Red for two. The Meteora gives Banks the same and we go split screen for a Ronda Rousey vs. Nia Jax video. This show really is everything I can’t stand about modern WWE wrapped together.

Back to full screen with Twisted Bliss hitting knees as we take a break. We come back with Natalya breaking up the Bank Statement on Bliss but hurting her knee in the process. She’s fine enough to put Banks in the Sharpshooter until Moon makes the save with a superkick. The Eclipse drops Natalya but Bliss makes another save. Banks comes in and gets knocked out again, leaving Natalya to make Bliss tap to the Sharpshooter at 20:39.

Rating: C+. The match was the same batch of diving saves and near falls that they all are, which means it was at least entertaining. What it wasn’t though was meaningful in any way as this has nothing to do with giving you an advantage in a ladder match. Then again, that’s never stopped WWE before because they came up with this blueprint years ago and haven’t changed it a bit since.

Quick clip of the ten woman tag from Smackdown.

From Raw again.

Finn Balor vs. Bobby Roode vs. Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Strowman clears the ring to start and we take an early break. Back with Strowman getting triple teamed and Owens asking who the monster is now. Strowman fights them off again as the announcers make their picks for Sunday. For some reason Owens tries a cheap shot on Strowman and then bails to the floor, which has gone so well for him with Strowman for months now. Strowman shrugs off Balor and Roode so he can chase Owens to the back. The chase doesn’t last long as Strowman throws him back through the entrance and it’s monster time.

Balor joins them on stage and gets sent into the set, leaving Strowman to load up the announcers’ table. Roode is back up with a ladder and some shots to the ribs have Strowman in trouble. They put Strowman on the table and Owens climbs a table for a big frog splash. Back from another break with Owens and Strowman down, leaving us with the not very thrilling Roode vs. Balor match.

Both guys go down so let’s hit that split screen Rousey vs. Jax ad. Balor kicks him out to the floor before hitting the Sling Blade back inside. Owens is back in to break up the Coup de Grace but Balor knocks him off the top. The required Tower of Doom puts everyone down and Strowman is on his feet. Roode and Balor get knocked down so Strowman catches Owens going into the crowd.

Back at ringside, the injured Strowman runs them all over but Balor manages to get some boots up in the corner. A top rope double stomp to back staggers Strowman again so he shoulders Balor down to get a breather. Roode and Owens get back together on Strowman until Owens rolls him Roode up for two. Balor hits the Sling Blade on Strowman and there’s the shotgun dropkick. There’s the Coup de Grace with Roode making the save because this just can’t end.

Roode hits the Glorious DDT on Strowman but Owens makes the save. Another frog splash gets two on Strowman so let’s bring in a ladder. Well if Owens could do this before, why did he wait so long? Strowman absorbs two shots to the ribs and chokeslams Owens (Owens: “I’M SORRY!”). The powerslam onto the ladder ends Owens at 25:57.

Rating: C-. The Balor vs. Roode part really hurt this but the bigger problem is the booking of Strowman. Looking at what happened to him in this match, why in the world would I believe that anyone can beat him in a singles match? Brock beat him clean but unless Lesnar returns from his spring and summer vacation early, there’s nothing for Strowman to do and with no one who could beat him (save for Roman of course), we’re stuck sitting around waiting on something for Strowman to find something to do or for him to cool off. What a great way to use a guy who only gets over like this every few years at best.

Quick clip of Samoa Joe vs. Rusev from Smackdown.

Mojo Rawley vs. Chad Gable

Rawley easily shoves him into the corner but Chad does a lot better with a wrist crank to take Rawley to the mat. An armdrag into an armbar keeps Rawley in trouble and the flying headscissors puts him down again. With the wrestling not working, Rawley plows through Gable to take over for the first time.

A whip into the corner gets two and we hit the chinlock. Gable fights up and dropkicks him to the floor but Rawley catches a high crossbody back inside. The fireman’s carry faceplant gives Rawley two so he flapjacks Gable face first into the buckle. The running right hand to the face in the corner puts Gable away at 6:24.

Rating: D+. Rawley is coming off as the new King of Main Event and that’s….not exactly a great place to be in. He’s getting better in the ring but egads he needs a better finisher than a running right hand in the corner. Gable on the other hand is just kind of floating around at the moment because there’s no place for an Olympic wrestler with talking abilities in WWE.

We’ll wrap it up here.

Here’s Coach to moderate a face to face showdown between Rousey and Jax (the second time since the match was announced). Nia says they’re both elite athletes and she’s purposely pushed Rousey’s buttons over the last few weeks. Rousey has a lot of great things about her but she’s still very new in WWE. Her success came from outside of WWE and there are some different rules around here. Nia lists off some things in MMA that you can’t do around here and promises a demonstration on Sunday. Rousey says she improvises and on Sunday she’ll improvise Nia’s arm off.

Nia points out that Rousey’s one match was against a businesswoman who competes part time (and HHH, who Stephanie has apparently absorbed) and it’s clear that Nia isn’t ready. That’s too much for Rousey, who lists off all the times where she’s been told she wasn’t ready and all the times she’s proven them wrong. Rousey: “I am Ronda Rousey and I was born ready.”

Overall Rating: D. So Smackdown, the much better show this week, is relegated to a bunch of clips while the boring Raw gets several featured segments. I’m guessing they’re trying to get in everything they can until the FOX deal makes Smackdown the major show by default but egads at least pretend like Smackdown matters. Or at least pretend that your horrible Raw show wasn’t all that great. You know, because it really wasn’t.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: June 14, 2018
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

It’s another big night this week with a double main event. First up we have Moose vs. Eli Drake in a #1 contenders match with the winner getting a World Title shot against Austin Aries at Slammiversary. Other than that we have Brian Cage challenging X-Division Champion Matt Sydal, which sounds like a way for Impact to find a way out of giving Cage the title. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at both matches, which is really all that matters on this show.

Opening sequence.

Grado comes out for a match but here’s Eddie Edwards to jump him with a kendo stick. Eddie rants about losing his chance to kill Sami Callihan last week and blames Tommy Dreamer, who he promises to expose. Cue Dreamer, who is somehow being featured again on a show in 2018. Dreamer says things have changed since his time but Eddie asks if Dreamer would change anything he ever did.

That earns an admission that Tommy is a hypocrite but he tells Eddie to leave it alone. Eddie says he hasn’t talked to his wife in a week and Dreamer says he knows. As you might expect, Eddie isn’t happy that Dreamer is talking to his wife and violence almost breaks out. Tommy shoves him down and gets caned in the head, because we’re probably getting Eddie vs. Dreamer at Slammiversary for some reason. Eddie beats on Dreamer even more before leaving without looking sorry.

Post break Dreamer is livid and leaves, saying he’s done around here.

The announcers preview the rest of the night.

Taya Valkyrie vs. Rebel

More kicks have Rebel in trouble and Taya mocks the LET’S GO REBEL chants. Rebel avoids a charge in the corner and scores with some forearms but a running knee to the face doesn’t warrant a cover. A middle rope moonsault misses and Taya spears her down, setting up the Road To Valhalla for the pin at 5:42.

Rating: D. Just a squash here with Rebel not exactly being the toughest of competition. Taya is kind of being left out in the cold at this point with Yung running the division and Allie being the only real challenger around, unless they actually try to trot Madison Rayne out there again. I mean, it would be a long stretch so you can probably pencil it in at this point.

Post match Taya calls out Madison Rayne for next week. So yeah, they really are going with Madison as the next #1 contender. Sure why not.

The classic clip of the week: the Unbreakable triple threat. I’ve heard of worse ideas.

Sydal says he isn’t worried about Cage because the muscles are just hiding inner weakness.

Callihan says last week was a win because Eddie is about to lose everything.

Cult of Lee vs. KM/Fallah Bahh

The huge Bahh rubs his stomach and shoves Lee down so it’s off to Konley instead. KM comes in to break up some double teaming and they crush the Cult against each other. Bahh and KM roll over the two of them on the mat but Bahh hits him by mistake, allowing the Cult to dropkick Bahh down. A rollup gives Lee the pin on KM at 3:25.

Rating: D-. So we have a comedy team breaking up before they’ve had any kind of success whatsoever. Well that’s good actually as the team was one of the worst and least funny that I’ve seen in a very long time. I don’t get the appeal of Bahh and I don’t get why KM isn’t working in a mouse trap factory somewhere. At least they didn’t get a title chase or anything.

Post match KM shoves Bahh down and says he’s done.

Video on Moose vs. Drake.

King has gotten LAX a Tag Team Title match next week. Diamante still isn’t convinced and doesn’t join in on the celebration. She leaves with LAX and King sits down, saying that the world is his.

From Philadelphia in the ECW Arena.

Moose vs. Eli Drake

No entrances or special hype as the match just starts with Drake jumping Moose from behind. They head outside where Moose whips Drake into the barricade but misses a charge. Drake gets in a not great looking Death Valley Driver onto the apron but gets chopped rather hard back inside.

A basement corner dropkick has Drake in more trouble and the chokebomb out of the corner gives Moose two. Drake powerbombs him for two and scores with Blunt Force Trauma. Thank goodness he got a better finisher than that weak looking thing. Moose (with Josh saying he has a stupid name) misses a charge into the post but still slips out of the Gravy Train. A spear gives Moose the title shot at 8:48.

Rating: C-. Why do I have a feeling that the lack of entrances or introductions is because this was just a regular match at a house show that they slapped a stipulation on to make things easier? This was just a regular match and there was hardly any urgency or drama, though Moose winning is an interesting idea. I doubt he wins the title, but it wouldn’t completely stun me.

Tessa Blanchard vs. Kiera Hogan

No DQ. Kiera wastes no time in pulling her to the floor and ramming Tessa face first into the apron over and over. Back in and a right hand puts Tessa on the floor again, followed by a baseball slide into a hurricanrana. Tessa gets in a flapjack on the ramp though and a dropkick to the back gets two inside.

We hit an abdominal stretch for a few moments but Kiera is right back out with some forearms. That just earns her a beating and Tessa grabs a chair. A hammerlock DDT gives Tessa two and she’s so annoyed at the speed of the count that the referee gets shoved down. Kiera gets in a chair shot and a low superkick for two but Tessa grabs a half nelson and spins Hogan face first into the chair for the pin at 8:07.

Rating: D+. I like both of them but this wasn’t much to see. Tessa getting the win and getting to be aggressive are a good thing but it’s nothing all that great, especially after Yung and Allie have been showing better aggression as of late. I do however like the multiple stories in the Knockouts division and pushing Tessa is a good idea.

Video on the X attacker.

The announcers accuse Petey Williams but Callis wants to let the investigation takes its course.

El Hijo Del Fantasma vs. Jake Crist

Jake stomps away in the corner and grabs a dragon sleeper to keep Fantasma in trouble. With that going nowhere, Jake goes with a choke in the corner until Fantasma grabs a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. A rollup gives Fantasma the pin at 3:20.

Rating: D. Another match that didn’t have time to go anywhere here and wasn’t exactly interesting in the first place. I remember being really into OVE when they debuted and were just doing cool moves but now they’re just heels who shout a lot and call it being villains. Fantasma isn’t much better but he’s a little bit ahead of either Crist.

Post match Dave Crist and Callihan come in to beat Fantasma down. They go for the mask and here’s Pentagon Jr. for the save. That’s kind of interesting.

X-Division Title: Matt Sydal vs. Brian Cage

Cage is challenging. Sydal circles him to start and chants a lot. There’s no contact in the first minute but things pick up in a hurry with Cage grabbing him by the head and lifting him up for a fall away slam, albeit after some human sized curls. Some corner clotheslines rock Sydal but here are Jimmy Jacobs and Kongo Kong.

The distraction lets Sydal knee Cage in the face and choke with his leg. Cage catches a boot though and grabs a capture suplex, followed by a superplex for two. The discus lariat misses so Cage settles for a buckle bomb. Sydal goes to the floor and Cage throws him back in, only to be sent into the steps by Kong to give Sydal the countout win at 6:04.

Rating: D. Well that wasn’t exactly surprising. Unfortunately it also wasn’t exactly good, engaging, entertaining or a match that managed to keep Kongo Kong off my TV. I’m not exactly thrilled by Kong vs. Cage, but I’m not exactly thrilled by much of anything involving Kong. Cage could win the title later, but I’d expect him to be more towards the World Title scene than anything else.

Overall Rating: D. Bleh indeed. This was a bunch of short matches, none of which were very good, and a lot of angle advancement which isn’t the most thrilling in the world. I really don’t need Dreamer and Kong being pushed into pay per view feuds but some of the other stuff does get my attention. Aries vs. Moose should be fun and the Knockouts division could be interesting, though they need another big time face in there. While not horrible, it certainly wasn’t good and nothing on it was particularly required viewing.

Results

Taya Valkyrie b. Rebel – Road To Valhalla

Cult of Lee b. KM/Fallah Bahh – Rollup to KM

Moose b. Eli Drake – Spear

Tessa Blanchard b. Kiera Hogan – Spinning faceplant into a chair

El Hijo Del Fantasma b. Jake Crist – Rollup
Matt Sydal b. Brian Cage via countout

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

You need to be watching this show.

WWE puts out a freaking ton of stuff on their YouTube channel and there is nothing that tops Formerly Known As. This show is basically a look back at wrestlers and where they came from with whoever the show is about that week going back to their old stomping grounds. They’ll go to wherever they started wrestling, often talking to their trainer or someone they started with while footage of their early career is shown. These things are great and more than worth checking out.

Here’s the playlist with all of the full shows and some shorter clips:

Check this out as it’s more than worth your time.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/kbs-review-last-time-promise/

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: June 13, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson, Mauro Ranallo

It’s the go home show for Takeover: Chicago and that means it’s time to put the final touches on everything. The five match card is already set and this week’s show will feature a focus on the NXT Title match between Aleister Black and his monster challenger Lars Sullivan. The match doesn’t need a lot of focus but at least they can have something to get us to Takeover. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

War Raiders vs. Ricky Martinez/Justin Storm

Hanson shoves Storm into the corner to start and cartwheels away from a charge to show off a bit. Martinez comes in and tries a forearm on Rowe but hurts himself in the process. The shotgun knees send Martinez into the corner and Rowe tosses Hanson onto him for good measure. The yet to be renamed Fallout ends Martinez at 2:38. Total squash.

Post match the Raiders call out TM61 and beat Storm up. They didn’t want him to feel left out you see.

Adam Cole yells at a cameraman for filming Undisputed Era without his permission.

Long recap of Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa, focusing on the time from their first match in New Orleans through now. Gargano won the unsanctioned match but Ciampa wasn’t done, attacking Gargano a few weeks later. Now it’s time for a street fight, though Johnny’s wife Candice doesn’t approve. Candice got take out in one of the fights and both guys were more than a little shake. Now it doesn’t have to be a wrestling match because they can just hurt each other.

EC3 vs. Kassius Ohno

This was set up last week when EC3 interrupted Ohno’s photo shoot. Ohno shoves the smiling EC3 down to start but EC3 is right back with a ram into the corner and some forearms of his own. The neck crank doesn’t last long as Ohno fights up with a knee to the face. Three straight backsplashes keep EC3 in trouble until he snaps Ohno throat first across the top rope. The 1%er (TKO) ends Ohno at 4:07.

Rating: D+. Just a quick win for EC3 here, which is a good thing as he doesn’t have a feud at the moment and has nothing else to do other than win random matches. That’s exactly why Ohno is here too as he’s more than fine enough to put on a good performance in a loss that isn’t going to hurt his credibility.

Bianca Belair vs. Aliyah

Aliyah takes some time to show off her new fire look and gets the bandanna forearmed off of her head. Belair runs her over in the corner and talks trash out of her blue lips. A guillotine doesn’t get Aliyah very far as Bianca suplexes her down instead. Belair deadlifts her into a gorilla press and a torture rack into a sitout faceplant is good for the pin on Aliyah at 2:52. Another squash.

Video on Shayna Baszler vs. Nikki Cross. Baszler came in and broke all the rules but Cross doesn’t live by any rules in the first place and seems to want Baszler to hurt her. It also seems to be part of the bigger Baszler vs. Dakota Kai feud with Cross standing up for her.

Kai is proud of standing up to Baszler but Belair comes in to take over the interview because she’s awesome. Belair talks a lot of trash about how great she is and how Kai is nothing but a Team Kick catchphrase. They set up a match for next week.

United Kingdom Title: Kyle O’Reilly vs. Pete Dunne

Dunne is defending and has a taped up leg. The fans are way into this as they tease kicking each other to start. A test of strength drives Dunne to the mat but he reverses into a failed double wristlock attempt. They head outside with an X Plex dropping O’Reilly onto the apron before Dunne takes it back inside for a double fish hook. Dunne loads up the moonsault out of the corner get but gets kicked in the bad knee to bring him back down.

It’s already off to the kneebar but Dunne gets to his feet and enziguris his way to freedom. Now the moonsault out of the corner works and Dunne goes back to the arm. The Bitter End is blocked and O’Reilly is back on the knee. That’s reversed into an X Plex, only to have O’Reilly go after the kneebar again. Dunne breaks that up as well and they trade enziguris until a right hand drops O’Reilly. Another shot to the face sets up the Bitter End to retain the title at 10:20.

Rating: B. Another good match from Dunne, even if there was no doubt that the title was safe. O’Reilly is great as some who can go after a body part without being a threat to win a big match most of the time. It’s almost like a Ken Shamrock without the crazy insanity that came along with him. Dunne looked great again here, and that’s all you can expect him to be anymore.

Post match the Undisputed Era runs in but Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan make the save.

Here’s Aleister Black for a chat to end the show. Black says that nothing is too powerful to be stopped by Black Mass and he will fade to black. Cue Lars Sullivan and the fight is on in a hurry. Black slugs away but gets clotheslined down, followed by the Freak Accident. A second and third Freak Accident plant Black so Sullivan can take him up to the announcers’ table. Black is out as Sullivan poses above the champ to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was a perfectly acceptable go home show with everything on Sunday getting some time in the form of either a promo, a video or a match. I was already fired up to see Takeover and with a nice push towards the NXT Title match, there’s not much else left to do. Good show tonight with a strong main event as NXT does it again.

Results

War Raiders b. Ricky Martinez/Justin Storm – Fallout to Martinez

EC3 b. Kassius Ohno – 1%er

Bianca Belair b. Aliyah – Torture rack into a facebuster

Pete Dunne b. Kyle O’Reilly – Bitter End

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: Ring of Honor Wrestling

Ring of Honor
Date: June 13, 2018
Location: Odeum Expo Theater, Villa Park, Illinois
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana

We’re getting closer and closer to Best in the World and thankfully two of the biggest matches have already been announced. In this case that would be the World Title and Tag Team Title matches, though the Tag Team Titles are on the line tonight as well. If nothing else, hopefully we can get a good match without much possibility of drama. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Jonathan Gresham vs. Flip Gordon

Flip has to flip out of a wristlock to start and then flips away to avoid a leg sweep. That means a You Can’t See Me (Cabana: “Wrong TV show.”) and Gresham actually gives him credit. Gordon gets sent into the corner but Gresham isn’t exactly going right after him to follow up. The modified Octopus Hold has Gordon screaming in pain and Gresham turns it into an abdominal stretch to make things even better.

Flip gets out and dropkicks him to the floor, of course setting up the sky high dive to take Gresham out. Back from a break with an exchange of some loud chops and then a forearm off until Gordon kicks him in the head. Gresham’s springboard tornado DDT is countered into a Falcon Arrow for a slightly delayed two. The Star Spangled Stunner gives Gordon the pin at 8:51.

Rating: C. I’m surprised by the finish here as Gresham isn’t someone you would expect to be putting Gordon over. If nothing else this should give us more fuel towards the BOOK FLIP FOR ALL IN story, which is actually rather amusing and could lead to a good payoff. I can also go with Gordon using the Stunner as the finisher as he doesn’t need to flip around all the time.

Post match here’s Bully Ray to talk about Gordon. He didn’t know that Gordon’s family was from Montana, which is where Bully’s parents wanted to retire. When Ray’s mother died, he was in the process of buying his parents a ranch in Montana. When he was finishing up the purchase, his dad dies of a heart attack. Ray hands them pictures of his parents, which he had with him at the Hall of Fame induction.

He also found out that Gordon was in the Army, which means a lot to Ray. From now on, they have no heat and Ray wants to shake his hand. I won’t even bother suggesting that he’s being legit as he’s already kicked Gordon low by the time I finish the previous line. Gordon is just a young boy and Ray thinks he’s nothing.

Video on Kelly Klein vs. Deonna Purrazzo.

We look back at the end of last week’s show with Kenny King costing Austin Aries the TV Title and Aries beating him down after the match.

Kelly Klein vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Purrazzo is in street clothes and jumps Klein anyway, sending her into the steps. They head inside with Purrazzo trying an early Fujiwara armbar but getting rolled up for two instead. Purrazzo follows her to the floor and gets caught in a fall away slam to cut her off. Back from a break with Purrazzo rolling some German suplexes, capped off by a release to rock Klein again. A snap suplex that looked more like a brainbuster gets the same and there’s the Fujiwara armbar.

Klein is in the ropes so Purrazzo chops the heck out of her. One more armbar attempt goes badly though and Purrazzo is sent shoulder first into the post. A super fall away slam (without much elevation) gives Klein two and there’s a ref bump (which happens WAY too often around here). Purrazzo hits a cutter for no count and yells at the referee for being knocked down. Klein is back up and reverses the Fujiwara armbar into the End of the Match for the tap at 9:35.

Rating: C+. These are two of the best the division has and that’s not a good sign as they only had a fairly good match. The division has some talent but there’s a reason you rarely see most of the women outside of this company. When two of their best can only put up this kind of a match, they probably need to do something a little bit different as this wasn’t much to see.

Jay Lethal is facing Kushida at Best in the World. This was the announcement that he didn’t get to make last week.

Dalton Castle isn’t worried about facing two friends at the same time because he rages like a furnace. They should fear him.

Caprice Coleman is on commentary for the main event.

Tag Team Titles: Roppongi 3K vs. Briscoes

The Briscoes are defending. Jay and Mark won’t shake hands and jump their much smaller challengers before the bell. As usual, these guys are such great villains. Mark gets caught in the wrong corner to start with Yoh hitting a slingshot dive. Coleman says that new champions wouldn’t mean an upset here. Uh, time to go back to the pulpit Caprice. A double back elbow puts the champs in control though and we take a break.

Back with Jay dropkicking Yoh in the face but not bothering to cover. Mark goes up and gets dropkicked out of the air but Jay is right in to cut off the hot tag attempt. It’s back to Mark to rip at Yoh’s face but he takes too long to follow up, allowing the hot tag to Show. That means rolling German suplexes with a superkick setting up the bridging version for two. 3K (Dominator/sliding cutter combination) is broken up though and Jay kicks Sho in the face, sending us to our second break.

Back with Mark powerbombing Sho for two more and the champs aren’t happy. Jay superplexes Sho to set up the Froggy Bow for another near fall and Coleman is losing it on commentary. Yoh comes back in for some running forearms so Mark chops the heck out of the two of them. That’s fine with Roppongi, who hit double flip dives to take the champs out again. 3K hits Mark with Jay diving in for the save. Jay throws in a chair for a distraction though and Mark gets in the low blow. Sho gets choked out and the Jay Driller to Yoh retains the titles at 13:39.

Rating: B+. I had a heck of a time here with all four working hard and turning it into a really fun match. Roppongi 3K’s growth in just the last year is nothing but amazing as they’ve gone from some worthless jobbers to guys capable of having a really good tag match. Excellent main event here and one of the most exciting things ROH has done in awhile.

Overall Rating: A-. The main event alone carries this one as the first two matches, while fine, didn’t exactly have the most energy in the world. I’ll still take a fun, fast paced main event that caps off a solid hour of wrestling but I could have gone for some build towards Best in the World. At least Lethal vs. Kushida should be a lot of fun as we haven’t seen much from Kushida in recent months.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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