IMG Credit: WWE

Mixed Match Challenge
Date: March 20, 2018
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Beth Phoenix

We’re almost done with the tournament as there are only three shows left. That means tonight will give us one of the finalists as Alexa Bliss/Braun Strowman face off with The Miz/Asuka. These have been two of the favorites for a long time now so it’s no surprise that one of them will be in the finals. Let’s get to it.

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

A shaken up Michael Cole welcomes us to the show as Daniel Bryan is stretchered out follow the attack at the hands of Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens.

You can vote for the team to get a second chance in next week’s other semifinal.

Semifinals: The Miz/Asuka vs. Alexa Bliss/Braun Strowman

Asuka is tagged back in and Miz goes for a walk. Alexa gets knocked into Braun’s arms again and, after a rather teased look, is thrown back in for an armbar from Asuka. That’s reversed into a chinlock as an END HER STREAK chant starts up. Strowman comes back in for a hard whip to the corner and a knee to Miz’s back. The running powerslam is broken up and Miz starts on the knee but the YES Kicks just annoy Strowman.

Miz gets thrown outside so a happy Bliss grabs Strowman by the beard and pulls him to her….but Miz forearms him in the back. NOW Braun is really angry and the chase is on with Strowman catching Miz in that scary way that he can do. For some reason Strowman tags Bliss back in and it’s time for the running kicks for two on Bliss. A double kick means a double knockdown and it’s Strowman driving Miz through the barricade. Bliss gets a pair of twos off a pair of rollups but it’s the Asuka Lock for the tap out at 11:08.

Rating: C. The idea of Asuka being terrified of losing her streak is a cool concept and something that can play to her later on. With her being scared of losing, someone can gain a psychological advantage. On top of that, there’s Bliss and Strowman, who unfortunately likely won’t go anywhere. At least it was fun while it was lasted.

Strowman carries Bliss to the back.

The winners of the second chance fan vote is…..Finn Balor and Sasha Banks. Bobby Roode and Charlotte are interested in the second chance to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Another nice and very easy to watch show here as it’s about twenty minutes every week. Odds are Miz and Asuka win the whole thing but either of the other teams could be a nice monkey wrench. This week’s match was fun and they had some more psychology here, which is a lot more than you can say about most WWE shows.

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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: March 20, 2018
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time to find out who else is going to Wrestlemania tonight as Mustafa Ali and Drew Gulak meet in the second semifinal match of the Cruiserweight Title tournament. The winner gets to meed Cedric Alexander for the title in New Orleans, meaning the pressure should be high. Let’s get to it.

Here’s last week’s show in case you need a recap.

The opening recap looks at Alexander winning last week and previews tonight’s match.

Opening sequence.

Hideo Itami vs. Lince Dorado

Fallout from Itami being a little too aggressive against Dorado’s buddy Gran Metalik last week. Itami wastes no time in taking Dorado into the corner for some hard shots to the mask. Dorado sends him outside and that means Itami needs to slow down a bit. Back in and a hurricanrana into a dropkick has Itami in trouble and Dorado stays at it with a quick dive.

Itami sends him back first into the apron to take over again though and a hard slap makes things even worse. That’s enough to wake Dorado up and he scores with a spinwheel kick to the face. The handspring is telegraphed though and Itami takes him down with a clothesline for two instead. Dorado kicks him in the jaw and it’s out to the floor again. This time though, Gran Metalik shoves Itami into the apron and that’s a DQ at 6:15.

Rating: C. Perfectly fine while it lasted but this is setting up something down the line instead of being a blowoff or conclusion here. Itami is better as a heel and the last few weeks have been an improvement over his very lackluster run so far. They’re getting something here with the tag feud and a third man to help Itami and Tozawa would make things more interesting.

Video on Drew Gulak, who really does want to change things for the better around here. Drake Maverick called him a goof and that was enough to snap Gulak back to reality. He’s been hyper aggressive in the tournament and that makes him all the more dangerous.

Cedric Alexander says last week was great but it means nothing if he doesn’t win the Cruiserweight Championship. Very true and sound logic.

TJP doesn’t care if Cedric Alexander, Santa Claus or Kermit the Frog wins at Wrestlemania. He’s next in line for a title shot.

TJP vs. Kenneth Johnson

Johnson was in the Cruiserweight Classic. TJP takes him down twice in short order and there’s a jumping back elbow to the jaw. A belly to back suplex sets up the slingshot hilo as we’re firmly in squash territory here. Johnson gets in a running Cannonball to a standing TJP but the knee gets taken out in short order. The Detonation Kick into the kneebar makes Johnson tap at 2:41. Just a squash.

TJP takes his sweet time in letting go.

Mustafa Ali wants to use his status as a force for change. When you hear the name Mustafa Ali, the knee jerk reaction is to boo him but that’s not the case with someone like him.

Drake Maverick is ticked off over the DQ finish earlier. We’re almost to the end of the tournament and the new champion needs challengers. Therefore, next week it’s Tozawa vs. Kalisto vs. TJP vs. Buddy Murphy and the winner will get a Cruiserweight Title shot. Drake: “There you go. Just turned a positive into a negative. That’s what I do.”

Cruiserweight Title Tournament Semifinals: Drew Gulak vs. Mustafa Ali

The empty seats opposite the camera are horribly noticeable. Gulak’s wristlock doesn’t get him very far as Ali reverses into one of his own to take over. An exchange of shoulders goes nowhere as Nigel defines a bully. Drew grabs a flapjack followed by a chinlock for a bit, only to have Ali come back with a dropkick. A hard clothesline to the back of the head gives Gulak two and a spinning electric chair gets the same.

With the wrestling not working, Drew stomps away at the head as the aggression coming out for the first time. Ali slaps away and hits a great sounding spinwheel kick to the jaw. The rolling X-Factor gets two and Ali stomps him out to the floor, showing him some aggression of his own. It seems to get to Ali though and his moral conundrum allows Gulak to send him into the buckle. That screwed over Roddy Piper in 1992 and it did the same to Ali.

Drew can’t get the dragon sleeper so Ali slaps on a Koji Clutch of all things. With the hold broken, Drew bails to the floor, setting up a big flip dive with Ali landing on Drew’s shoulder in a crash. The 054 is broken up as Ali is sent to the floor, with his FACE landing on the apron. Thankfully without bleeding, Ali gets up and avoids a charge to send Gulak over the announcers’ table. A big dive drops Gulak again and it’s time to load up the announcers’ table.

Ali takes too much time though and gets backdropped off the table for a crash. Drew breaks the count though and sends Ali HARD into the post (one of the nastiest looking postings I’ve ever seen), followed by a toss into the timekeeper’s area. Of course that’s only good for a nine because the trope of diving back in before ten is strong in this company. Back in and Ali manages a tornado DDT to counter the dragon sleeper and the 054 sends Ali to Wrestlemania at 15:11.

Rating: B. The ending was a bit sudden here and Gulak’s aggression being gone took away a lot of the good things this match could do. That being said, they’ve got something with Ali going a step further each time to become champion as he loses a little bit more of what got him here in the first place. I really hope it’s not setting up a heel turn, but there’s a story there. Good match, but not as good as some of the tournament matches.

Post match Ali says WE are going to Wrestlemania (I hope I can find something to wear). It doesn’t matter what your name is, where you’re from or what color your skin is. All that matters is what’s in your heart.

Overall Rating: B+. They have something very, very special with this tournament final and I have no idea who wins the thing. That’s one of the hardest things to pull off in wrestling and they’ve done it to perfection here. The rest of the show was completely fine, but this was all about setting up the finals and they did it perfectly. I’m very impressed.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Wrestlemania XVII
Date: April 1, 2001
Location: Reliant Astrodome, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 67,925
Commentators: Jim Ross, Paul Heyman

Sunday Night Heat: Steve Blackman/Grandmaster Sexay vs. X-Factor

The Astrodome looks amazing with a sea of people and the very cool looking ceiling with daylight still coming in. The ramp is really long as well which makes for some lengthy entrances.

Intercontinental Title: Chris Jericho vs. William Regal

Shane McMahon in his WCW limo arrives.

Tazz/APA vs. Right to Censor

Hardcore Title: Raven vs. Kane vs. Big Show

Jimmy Snuka is at WWF New York (a WWF themed night club/restaurant).

The Rock has just arrived.

European Title: Eddie Guerrero vs. Test

Rating: D+. Again this was fine but that tieup in the ropes killed the momentum they had going. Test was little more than a midcard guy at this point but Eddie was getting more and more over every week. Unfortunately he was also getting more and more into substance abuse and would be gone by the end of the year for a long time.

Austin arrives nearly an hour into the show.

Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit

They hit the mat again and go for the legs but roll into the ropes for another break. The fans are all over Angle and he has to get to the ropes to escape a Crossface twice in a row. Back in and Benoit tries a third straight Crossface so Kurt punches him in the face for the first real advantage.

Video on the WWF going to Fort Hood for a pep rally with the military. There was a parade with a cadence for Undertaker and the wrestlers all got plaques. Angle of course wanted a medal instead. This was cool stuff and something that would be amplified by the Tribute to the Troops show in a few years.

Ivory is defending and Chyna has that fireworks gun again. An early belt shot puts Chyna down and Ivory (described as looking like Lilith Sternin-Crane by JR) hits some very weak forearms to the back. Chyna grabs a kick to the leg and throws Ivory away with ease. Some clotheslines set up a powerbomb but Chyna picks Ivory (further described as a yapping female dog by JR) up at two. Instead a gorilla press drop completes the squash and Chyna is champion at 2:39. This is the most logical way to go with this match as there was no way anyone was going to buy Ivory putting up a fight against Chyna here.

We recap Vince vs. Shane. Vince went on a power trip and Shane came back to take him out for cheating on Linda. This led to a street fight at Wrestlemania but Shane upped the ante by buying WCW out from under Vince six days before this show. This is a match with a very deep backstory and a bunch of stories are going to be intertwined.

Vince McMahon vs. Shane McMahon

Yesterday at Axxess, the Hardys said the feud with the Dudleyz and Edge and Christian ends with TLC II.

Tag Team Titles: Edge and Christian vs. Hardy Boyz vs. Dudley Boyz

Axxess video.

The new attendance record is 67,925, meaning we get some more awesome wide shots of the crowd.

Gimmick Battle Royal

Luke, Butch, Duke Droese, Iron Sheik, Greg Valentine, The Goon, Doink the Clown, Kamala, Kim Chee, Repo Man, Jim Cornette, Nikolai Volkoff, Michael Hayes, One Man Gang, Gobbledy Gooker, Hillbilly Jim, Brother Love, Sgt. Slaughter

Slaughter gives Sheik the Cobra Clutch one last time.

HHH vs. Undertaker

HHH finds a chair and destroys Undertaker but he takes too long with a big swing, allowing Undertaker to grab him by the throat for a terrifying chokeslam off the tower. The visual is kind of ruined as we see HHH laying on a big pad but it looked great until then. Undertaker makes up for it by dropping an elbow off the tower and beats up the EMTs who dare try to help HHH.

The Last Ride (an elevated powerbomb) is loaded up but HHH grabs the sledgehammer and blasts Undertaker in the head for a VERY close two. That was one heck of a near fall. Undertaker is busted open so HHH hammers away in the corner, only to have Undertaker come out with the Last Ride for the pin at 18:17.

Rating: A. Another great brawl here with both guys beating the tar out of each other for nearly twenty minutes. The referee being out cold that long was a stretch (and no medical assistance was a bit ridiculous) but it let the match make more sense. This was when HHH could do no wrong and Undertaker always makes it work at Wrestlemania. Really good stuff here and a forgotten classic.

Of note: JR says Undertaker is 9-0 at Wrestlemania. This is the match that really made the Streak a thing for the first time.

A fan won a contest to get tickets to the show.

Rock and Austin are ready.

WWF World Title: Steve Austin vs. The Rock

What was a big surprise was Vince and Austin uniting, which is also a very questionable decision. Austin was still red hot and certainly could have carried the company as the lead star but this took the Austin train off the tracks (outside of Texas of course, where Austin could do no wrong). Vince and Austin coming together signaled the end of an era and a bold move, but it was part of a string of decisions that helped bring the company down from its peak and sent it into a tailspin for a few years.

Ratings Comparison

Chris Jericho vs. William Regal

Original: B

2013 Redo: B-

2015 Redo: B-

Right to Censor vs. Tazz/A.P.A.

Original: C-

2013 Redo: C-

2015 Redo: D+

Raven vs. Kane vs. Big Show

Original: C+

2013 Redo: C+

2015 Redo: C+

Eddie Guerrero vs. Test

Original: C-

2013 Redo: D+

2015 Redo: D+

Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit

Original: B+

2013 Redo: B+

2015 Redo: A-

Chyna vs. Ivory

Original: N/A

2013 Redo: N/A

2015 Redo: N/A

Vince McMahon vs. Shane McMahon

Original: B

2013 Redo: B

2015 Redo: C+

Edge and Christian vs. Hardy Boyz vs. Dudley Boyz

Original: A+

2013 Redo: A+

2015 Redo: A+

Gimmick Battle Royal

Original: N/A

2013 Redo: N/A

2015 Redo: A

Undertaker vs. HHH

Original: A+

2013 Redo: A

2015 Redo: A

Steve Austin vs. The Rock

Original: A+

2013 Redo: A+

2015 Redo: A+

Overall Rating

Original: A+

2013 Redo: A++

2015 Redo: A+

As I said a few years back: Yep it holds up.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/03/24/history-of-wrestlemania-with-kb-wrestlemania-17-oh-yes/

And the 2013 2013 Redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/03/26/wrestlemania-count-up-wrestlemania-xvii-the-greatest-show-of-all-time/

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Wrestlemania XVI
Date: April 2, 2000
Location: Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, California
Attendance: 19,776
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

One last note: this show marks the return to the 3+ hour shows after years of under three hours.

Lillian Garcia sings the heck out of the National Anthem, as she always does.

Earlier today, the referees held a conference with all the participants in the hardcore battle royal. The title had been defended 24/7 with title matches taking place at any given time and in any given place. For tonight though, the rule is only enforced for the fifteen minute time limit. After that time comes to an end, the last person to pin the champion leaves with the title.

Hardcore Title: Hardcore Battle Royal

Tazz, Crash Holly, Hardcore Holly, Viscera, Joey Abs, Rodney, Pete Gas, Taka Michinoku, Funaki, Thrasher, Mosh, Faarooq, Bradshaw

Rating: D+. Well that certainly happened. This really needed to have about five minutes cut out as you can only get into people hitting each other with the same weapons for so long (a lesson they would take two years to learn). The rapid fire title changes and stuff like the Posse trading the title was fine but this started dragging in the middle. Crash would get the title back the next night to fix the error at the end.

Long Axxess video.

D-Von Dudley thinks this ladder match is another way for the WWF to hold the Dudleyz down. Bubba, still with a thick southern accent, promises to take Wrestlemania and the ladder match to a new level of violence. His stutter kicks in right before he can drop an F bomb.

Tag Team Titles: Edge and Christian vs. Hardy Boyz vs. Dudley Boyz

Instead of climbing though, both challenging teams put a ladder over a Dudley in the corners, only to have the Hardyz take out Edge and Christian. Jeff puts Bubba on the ladder but Bubba avoids the 450 for the first big crash. Bubba one ups Jeff by putting the ladder onto Jeff and hitting his middle rope backsplash with his own head crashing into the ladder.

Christian puts a ladder on Matt so Edge can ride another ladder down to crush Matt. With everyone else down, Bubba puts a ladder around his own head and spins around to blast everyone not named D-Von in the face. Edge and Christian dropkick the ladder to take over though before nailing D-Von as well. Christian dives off a ladder to take out Matt and Bubba, leaving Edge to spear Jeff off a ladder.

Now we start the tradition of the huge ladder, which is set up on the floor and is almost as high as the ones in the ring. Jeff is laid out in front of it but Christian hits Bubba in the head with the bell, allowing Jeff to go for a climb. With nothing to lose (save for most of the bones in his spine), Jeff Swantons off the ladder for one of the biggest crashes ever up to this point. The wide shot makes it look even better and the fans are rightfully stunned.

Back in the ring, Christian and Matt climb onto the scaffold but Edge shoves Matt off and through the last table in the ring. The table almost explodes as Matt crashes through it and the fans are fired up all over again as Edge and Christian pull down the titles for their first championship at 22:25.

JR and Lawler rave about the ladder match.

Terri Runnels vs. The Kat

Mae gives Moolah a Bronco Buster post match and Kat strips Terri.

Wrestlemania XVII will be in Houston.

The Radicalz (minus Chris Benoit) are ready for the six person tag but Eddie is too busy checking his hair to impress Chyna.

Too Cool (Grandmaster Sexay and Scotty 2 Hotty, formerly Too Much) and Chyna are ready too.

Radicalz vs. Too Cool/Chyna

Saturn (barely) hits a top rope elbow but Eddie gets superplexed, finally allowing the hot tag to Chyna. House is quickly cleaned and a double low blow gets rid of Saturn and Malenko. Chyna is barely able to powerbomb Eddie so she grabs him between the legs and gorilla presses him while trying to keep the side of her tights from splitting any further. A quick sleeper drop puts Eddie away at 9:39.

Rating: C-. Watchable but mostly average match with the fans only caring about Eddie vs. Chyna, which was quite the hot story around this time. Things would pick up even more the next night as Chyna suddenly fell for the Latino Heat and hooked up with Eddie for months. This was an acceptable use of ten minutes, if nothing else as a way to advance the Eddie vs. Chyna story.

Some fans won a trip to Wrestlemania.

Earlier tonight, Kurt Angle beat up Bob Backlund for suggesting that he defend both titles. This goes nowhere.

Angle asks for some extra security for his victory celebration and offers the guard autographs if he does it. Smug Angle was pure gold and one of the most genuinely hilarious characters the company has ever had. He was such a goofy dork but he sold the whole thing as well as anyone could have done. The in ring abilities made it even better but the character made Angle greater than anything he did in a match.

Intercontinental Title/European Title: Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit vs. Chris Jericho

X-Pac/Road Dogg vs. Rikishi/Kane

Rikishi is finally in his most famous gimmick and near his highest popularity. Kane has the always awesome inverted color scheme for his attire and Paul Bearer in his corner. X-Pac and Road Dogg, the once again heel DX, have Tori (now a hot valet) with them. Tori left Kane for X-Pac and this is the result with the many showdowns coming later. Kane goes after Tori to start and Road Dogg gets an early Stink Face.

Rock talks about going through everything in the last year to get back to Wrestlemania to reclaim his title. All the chokeslams, all the Mandible Claws and all the Pedigrees are worth it because he has one more shot to become champion. This is the intense Rock and it works almost as well as the funny version. He skips the eyebrow though.

Martin Short, Michael Clarke Duncan and French Stewart are here.

Again no official recap, but HHH retired Foley, Rock won the Rumble and Show proved that he really won the Rumble.

WWF World Title: Mick Foley vs. Big Show vs. The Rock vs. HHH

Ratings Comparison

Original: D+

2013 Redo: D+

2015 Redo: D

Hardcore Battle Royal

Original: C+

2013 Redo: B-

2015 Redo: D+

Original: F

2013 Redo: D-

2015 Redo: F

Edge and Christian vs. Dudley Boyz vs. Hardy Boyz

Original: B+

2013 Redo: A-

2015 Redo A-

The Kat vs. Terri Runnels

Original: F

2013 Redo: N/A

2015 Redo: N/A

Radicalz vs. Too Cool/Chyna

Original: D

2013 Redo: D+

2015 Redo: C-

Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle vs. Chris Jericho

Original: A

2013 Redo: B+

2015 Redo: B

Rikishi/Kane vs. D-Generation X

Original: D+

2013 Redo: D

2015 Redo: D

HHH vs. The Rock vs. Big Show vs. Mick Foley

Original: D+

2013 Redo: D+

2015 Redo: C+

Overall Rating

Original: D

2013 Redo: D

2015 Redo: D+

Not much changes in a few years.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/03/23/history-of-wrestlemania-with-kb-wrestlemania-16-they-thought-this-was-a-good-idea/

And the 2013 Redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/03/25/wrestlemania-count-up-wrestlemania-xvi-the-worst-show-from-the-best-year/

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

The paperback sells for $10.99 and is available through Amazon. If you’re not big on the physical book, the e-book is still available as well. In case you don’t have a Kindle or device to read an e-book, there are plenty of FREE apps you can get from Amazon for pretty much any  electronic device, all of which are available at this link.

You can pick up the paperback from Amazon here.

From the UK Amazon here.

If you’re in another country with its own Amazon page or want the e-book, just search “KB Grab Bag” and it should be the first thing to come up.

Also you can still get any of my previous books on the WWE Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, Monday Night Raw from 1997, 1998 and 2001, Monday Nitro from 1995-1998, In Your House, Summerslam, Starrcade, ECW Pay Per Views, Royal Rumble, Saturday Night’s Main Event, the WWF and WCW pay per views from 1998, Wrestlemania, NXT and Clash of the Champions at my author’s page here.

I hope you like it and shoot me any questions you might have.

KB

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: March 22, 2018
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Sonjay Dutt

It’s time to find out what happened last week in Feast or Fired. Tonight is the opening of the briefcases and that means three people are getting title shots while a fourth is getting fired. The firing isn’t the biggest surprise in the world but there’s still some interest elsewhere. Let’s get to it.

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

The case holders (Eli Drake, Moose, Petey Williams and Ethan Carter III) arrive as Josh recaps last week’s match.

Recap of Feast of Fired, in case the spoken version didn’t do it for you.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Alberto El Patron to say he can fight even if he’s in a suit. He’s ready to fight a real champion in Austin Aries, but Aries doesn’t know who really is the greatest man that ever lived. Cue Aries to talk about how they’re no so different. They’re willing to punch people in the face and they love professional wrestling.

Aries is the truth though and the title match is on for Redemption. Alberto says they both have something to prove so the title match is on. Did we really need to establish that twice? Aries says he’s short but the chip he’ll stand on makes him bigger. El Patron goes to leave as Austin’s music plays, but Aries says to play Alberto’s, because his won’t be playing to end Redemption.

The hosts are in the studio to preview the show with Josh thankfully not holding the Grand Championship.

Trevor Lee vs. Fallah Bahh

Lee makes the mistake of shoving Bahh and falls to the power of the belly. Bahh steps over his back but a Caleb Konley distraction lets Lee knock him to the floor. Back in and we hit a very quick neck crank for two (yes off a neck crank) before Lee thinks it’s a good idea to try a sunset flip. That earns him the sitdown splash so Konley tries to come in. Bahh rolls over both of them in a row but takes too long going up, allowing Lee to roll him up from the middle rope for the pin at 5:28.

Rating: D. Bahh is rapidly falling into the trap of wrestlers his size: he does the same stuff over and over again and the impact goes away. We get it: he’s big, he shouts a lot and he rolls over people. That’s only going to get you so far and Bahh is already there. I’ve never gotten the appeal and while he’s not terrible, if you’ve seen one of his matches, you’ve seen all of them.

OVE is stalking Alisha Edwards (Eddie’s wife) in her hotel. Eddie sees it and runs off as OVE gets to her door.

Petey Williams is ready to open his briefcase and become X-Division Champion again once and for all.

X-Division Title: Rohit Raju vs. Matt Sydal

Sydal is defending and has Josh Matthews in his corner, meaning Sonjay is alone on commentary. Matt takes him into the corner but lets him out with a peace sign. An armbar allows them to turn up the pace a bit until Sydal charges into an elbow. That’s about it for Raju at the moment as Matt takes him down into a Muta Lock.

As usual it’s not enough for a submission so Raju comes back with a neckbreaker as we take a break. Back with Sydal getting two off a standing moonsault but Raju hits a running knee to the head. A German suplex cuts Raju off and the shooting star connects to retain Sydal’s title at 11:24.

Rating: C. Raju is another example of Impact not knowing how to introduce new characters. He just showed up a few weeks ago and the company acts like we know who he is. I’m assuming he had some videos put up on YouTube or their website, but TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT HIM! If he’s good enough to get a title shot and be in Feast or Fired, he’s worthy of an explanation.

Moose is ready to become World Champion and is glad he gambled on Feast or Fired.

Eli Drake is ready to get his World Title back. They can strike him down but he’ll be back even stronger. He’s the Obi-Wan Kenobi of Impact Wrestling.

Knockouts Title: Allie vs. Sienna

Allie is defending and Sienna jumps her before the bell. A crossbody is pulled out of the air and Sienna gets two off a slam. Forearms work a bit better for Allie and a Codebreaker (actually called that) gets two. Sienna gets the same off a discus lariat but Allie slips out of the AK47 and superkicks her down to retain at 3:55.

Rating: D+. What happened to Sienna? She used to be the most dangerous woman in the division and now she’s losing clean in about four minutes. On the other hand, Allie is on a roll and even though it’s a year late, it’s nice to see her getting to showcase her skills. There’s a ton of value in Allie and it’s about time Impact is giving her a chance.

Post match Braxton Sutter comes out to try and reconcile with Allie, only to call her Laurel by mistake. Allie’s sideways glare is great. Sutter proposes and Allie doesn’t seem impressed, but the debuting Su Yung comes in from behind and beats her down. A twisting Samoan Driver leaves Allie laying, much to Sutter’s delight.

Ethan Carter III says he’s going to get the World Title shot but a bunch of people walk by, saying he’ll be fired.

Classic Clip: Abyss vs. Mick Foley in Monster’s Ball from Bound For Glory 2009.

Eddie arrives at the hotel (of course with cameras waiting on him), runs into the room and finds….his wife safe in bed. Then HE LEAVES, only to bump into Sami Callihan (dressed as a maid) so the brawl can break out. Sami gets the better of it and Alisha comes out to check on Eddie, earning herself the thumbs down from Callihan. I’m still trying to get over Eddie LEAVING HIS WIFE IN A HOTEL ROOM WHEN A GROUP OF CRAZY PEOPLE ARE STALKING HER.

The announcers preview the rest of the show.

We recap Jimmy Jacobs/Kongo Kong vs. Joseph Park, who has become Abyss again. Tonight it’s Monster’s Ball.

Abyss vs. Kongo Kong

Anything goes and Abyss has James Mitchell in his corner. Abyss wins an early slugout but Kong runs him over and pounds away. A trashcan to the head puts Kong on the floor though and we take a break. Back with Kong getting slammed off the top and Abyss grabbing the bag of tacks.

Rating: D. If this is their big idea to make Kong into the next big thing, they need to go back to the drawing board. By that I mean they need to get rid of Kong and find anyone else because he’s not going to work no matter what they try. Next up likely means a World Title chase because that’s what would annoy me the most.

It’s time to open the briefcases so Williams, Moose, Drake and Carter are in the ring.

First up is Eli who gets….a Tag Team Title shot. Drake: “What am I supposed to do with this?”

Next up is Williams who gets….an X-Division Title shot. He seems happy.

Before we open the final two cases, Moose says he’s winning. Carter says see you never Moose because he’s about to be fired. It’s Moose getting the World Title shot and Carter has reality set in very quickly. He’s frozen in place and can’t open the case, eventually saying that’s not his case. It’s Ishimori’s case but JB opens it instead.

Carter thinks it’s a joke and calls this whole thing a dumb idea. Is King of the Mountain next? He’s held this company on his perfectly symmetrical back for years now. Carter goes into a crazed rant about all of his accomplishments, including being Dixie Carter’s nephew. He finally calms down….and then beats JB up with the briefcase. Brian Cage comes in for the save and it’s a Drill Claw to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. The two main focal points of this show were the Feast or Fired reveals and Monster’s Ball. That would come down to a major result that was spoiled nearly two months ago and a match with one of the most low rent acts I’ve ever seen in this or any other company. What exactly were they expecting to work about this show? Yung’s debut was good and the opening segment worked well, but other than that, this was a pretty lame show.

Results

Trevor Lee b. Fallah Bahh – Rollup

Matt Sydal b. Rohit Raju – Shooting star press

Allie b. Sienna – Superkick

Kongo Kong b. Abyss – Top rope splash

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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

Once every so often, a personality steps between the ropes of the squared circle and transcends the wrestling business.

Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, John Cena and Dave Batista; every era and generation has a select few who became notable to the wider world for more than just lacing up a pair of boots.

They are living legends – WWE Hall of Famers or sure-fire bets to one day take their place among the pantheon of wrestling greats. It is easy to quantify their in-ring legacies through championships amassed, Royal Rumble wins or other accomplishments and pay-per-views headlined. Consider this though; there wouldn’t be a WWE Hall of Fame without Andre the Giant.

Just a Gimmick?

Nicknamed “The Eighth Wonder of the World” and billed from Grenoble in the French Alps, he was actually born and raised in Coulommiers – a commune 60 kilometers east of Paris. A postwar farm boy and school dropout who suffered from gigantism from an early age became one of the most popular wrestlers on the planet. Andre the Giant notably competed in Europe and Africa, the Far East and Down Under, and throughout the Americas.

For all that globetrotting, Andre’s actual accolades in wrestling are modest by modern standards. He was no 16-time world champion like Flair or Cena, winning the old WWF title once before quickly surrendering it to Ted DiBiase. Andre’s was a gimmick – the gargantuan monster – that didn’t need a run with the belt to enhance it. The only other notable example like him in this respect is The Undertaker.

Andre enjoyed greater success in terms of championships in tag team wrestling, holding a couple of belts in the NWA with “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes. He also earned notoriety in Japan when partnering Giant Baba and won the WWF tag titles with Haku, who, in his own way, was a trailblazer for current wrestling stars with Pacific Island heritage like The Usos and Roman Reigns.

And the critics? It seems Andre the Giant divided opinion or at least drew different responses at various stages of his career. He won awards for most popular (1977 and 1982), hated (1988) and embarrassing (1989) wrestler of the year.  Twice involved in Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s match of the year (1981 and 1988), Andre also received the less desirable honor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s worst worked bouts (1987 and 1989). They also named him worst wrestler of the year on three occasions.

A Giant Legacy

The 25th anniversary of Andre’s death came in January – coincidentally, one day before this year’s Royal Rumble event – and that milestone is reason enough to ask what his legacy is.

First, who can forget the “Andre the Giant has a posse” stickers designed by renowned street artist Shepard Fairey? He also starred as Fezzik (a giant, no less) in the cult 1987 film The Princess Bride. There is now possibly a biopic and definitely a documentary in development too, as WWE and HBO team up to tell the story of his life.

Andre has also been immortalized in more than a dozen WWE computer games as a playable character. The wrestler routinely appears in the annual WWE 2K series of games and has a starring role in the much older WWE All Stars for the PSP. A variety of online game types feature Andre as the running theme, and he’s listed as “The Irresistible Force” in the Android and iOS app WWE Champions, a title that melds signature grappling moves with modern match-three gameplay.

And the tangible things just keep on coming. There are countless action figures in his image and the annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal that has featured on the WrestleMania undercard for the last four years. Wrestlers not otherwise engaged in a program at “The Showcase of the Immortals” compete for an eponymous trophy of Andre in his signature arms folded pose.

The Big Show is a previous winner of the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal and that is where his legacy starts to enter the ether. Paul Wight resembles Andre in size and stature, even suffering from gigantism during his youth too. When debuting in WCW more than two years after Andre’s death, Wight played his kayfabe son and was simply called The Giant.

In WWE’s main rival creating this character and putting Show straight into a feud with his storyline father’s old nemesis Hulk Hogan, Andre was the basis upon which an entire storyline was founded. That shows not only how respected he was, but how much he was missed as a monster attraction and crowd draw.

That Body Slam

If you haven’t seen that iconic wrestling moment with The Hulkster taking Andre off his feet with the body slam from WrestleMania III, then watch it and you’ll realize that spot is a gift that keeps on giving. Cesaro directly invoked the spirit of it and paid homage to Andre when doing the very same move to Big Show in the inaugural Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania XXX.

There had been big wrestlers before Andre the Giant. Big wrestlers who had got over too. Without him, though, would there have ever been a Big Show? The storyline son angle is something WWE is still using today too, with Monday Night RAW general manager Kurt Angle and Jason Jordan.

Another comparison besides Paul Wight, and arguably a better one in other ways, is The Great Khali – a foreign wrestler coming to the USA from abroad as Andre did and making it big by winning a world title. India is a market the WWE has belatedly tried to cultivate properly through Jinder Mahal’s near six-month WWE Championship reign in 2017 and an end-of-year tour of the Subcontinent.

Whether Andre the Giant really was a trailblazer for massive athletes becoming wrestlers or just one of many that paved the way, so that today we have “The Monster Among Men” Braun Strowman on a seemingly never-ending push doesn’t matter. The similarities are there and the debate is one for internet forums. Strowman’s own in-ring performance is nothing flashy, his moveset limited, but it’s believable his basic offense – just like Andre’s before him – hurts opponents.

It seems apt to end this in-depth look at Andre the Giant and his legacy with where it began; the WWE Hall of Fame. He was so beloved that it was created for him as the initial inductee. Over 100 wrestlers have followed Andre into it since, including former tag partner Hillbilly Jim for the class of 2018.

Now, it is very easy to downplay this. Popular sports in America all have a hall of fame. It’s easy to say Andre’s death was just a convenient time for the then WWF to establish theirs, but that doesn’t change the fact his passing was the catalyst for recognizing wrestlers – living or otherwise. Nothing else highlights the Giant’s legacy quite like it.

Geez, you’re ready to talk about Ring of Honor and then this happens.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/kbs-review-oh-yes/

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: March 21, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

We’re in the home stretch towards Takeover: New Orleans and you can guess most of the card. NXT knows how to set up things down the last few weeks and I have no doubt that they’ll pull it off again. We also have more from the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, which could be a lot of fun by the end. Let’s get to it.

Here’s last week’s show if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Tommaso Ciampa, still without music, to open the show. The fans have their Johnny Gargano signs to annoy him even more, which are a great touch. Ciampa has a mic and again the fans won’t let him get a word out. After being cut off over and over, Ciampa finally shouts that HE’S GONE. Gargano isn’t walking down the aisle because he’s gone.

Ciampa drops the mic and heads to the floor to glare at the fans, eventually ripping up the Johnny signs. He pulls away one from a fan….and it’s Johnny Gargano. The fight is on until security pulls him away as Ciampa looks like he’s seen a ghost. Johnny is carried out into the parking lot as the fans want to see them fight. Another great segment here and a moment that needed to happen.

Charly Caruso recaps the first round of the Dusty Classic. There is a change to announce as well: Tyler Bate has injured his knee so Moustache Mountain has to be replaced. A surprise team will replace them tonight. Roderick Strong will be one member, but his partner will be revealed later.

The Undisputed Era laughs off the idea of Strong winning anything in NXT. Adam Cole is so confident that he’d like Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish to stay in the back for his match tonight. In other words, Fish is injured.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch vs. Roderick Strong/???

Ok so it’s later and the partner is…..Pete Dunne. Well that works. Strong and Lorcan hit the mat to start with Roderick grabbing something like an STF to keep the pace slow. Burch comes in and gets dragged over to the corner with Dunne coming in to crank on the arm. The twisting only gets Dunne so far as Burch takes the leg out and tries a kneebar, drawing in both partners as we go to a break.

Back with Dunne still working on the arm, followed by a shot to the face to send Burch into the corner. Stereo chops get two on Danny but he comes right back with a middle rope dropkick. Lorcan comes back in for a running boot to the face and a running European uppercut gets two on Strong.

The running Blockbuster gets the same as the pace stays white hot. Everything breaks down again and Strong dives into another uppercut. Burch throws Strong with a release German suplex and Lorcan suplexes Strong onto him in a big crash. Dunne gets caught in a Crossface but Strong kicks Lorcan onto Danny to break up the hold. A blind tag brings Strong back in and End of Heartache finishes Burch at 10:15.

Rating: B-. Dunne didn’t get to shine as much as usual here but it was still a heck of a hard hitting match with all four looking good. Strong and Dunne could make for a solid team built on respect, though I’m not sure how far they’ll go outside of the tournament. We got in a good match here, but it makes me want to see Dunne on his own more than anything else.

Ember Moon vs. Aliyah

Non-title. Aliyah’s headscissors on the mat doesn’t get her very far so she pulls Ember out of the corner and onto the mat for some more success. Cue Shayna Baszler to do commentary, with her feet on the table of course. Aliyah grabs a chinlock for a bit before Moon counters a crossbody into a Samoan drop. A flip clothesline in the corner sets up the Eclipse for the pin at 2:57. Nothing match and little more than a way to have the women on screen together.

Raul Mendoza comes out for a match but gets jumped by Andrade Cien Almas. Andrade and Zelina Vega get in the ring with the former ranting in Spanish about how great of a champion he is. Almas wants Aleister Black to face him next week and to show him some respect.

Lars Sullivan is back next week, along with Aleister Black and Almas going face to face.

William Regal promises an announcement next week to change the landscape of NXT forever.

Adam Cole vs. Kassius Ohno

Ohno grabs an arm to start but gets run over by a shoulder. A big boot to the chest breaks up a leapfrog and there’s a heck of a backsplash to crush Cole in a painful looking landing. Cole gets sent outside and comes up limping but of course it’s just goldbricking, meaning a jumping enziguri rocks Ohno again.

Back with Cole kicking him down for two and getting the same off a neckbreaker. We hit the chinlock for a bit before a Backstabber gets another two. Cole tries a charge and runs right into a punch to the jaw to get us right back to even. Ohno’s big boot into a slam into a legdrop (well he is wearing yellow) give him two of his own and Cole’s head gets knocked off by the cyclone kick.

They forearm the heck out of each other until the Last Shot gives Cole two more. Cole’s Shining Wizard is reversed and the High Tension Elbow knocks him out onto the ramp. Back in and three straight superkicks set up the Last Shot and the running knee to the back of the head (called the Last Shot here) end Ohno at 13:00.

Rating: C+. Ohno is at his best here when he’s putting someone over and making them look awesome. That’s what we got here and the match was a lot of fun with Cole talking trash and hanging in a fight at the end. This gives Cole the little bit of momentum back that he’s been lacking as of late so hopefully this leads somewhere else for him.

Overall Rating: B. They’re getting closer to New Orleans and most of the card is already set. I’m liking the idea of the NXT Title match more and more every week as it’s starting to get out of the shadow of Gargano vs. Ciampa. Having Gargano show up again made for a better show as well, as it was a necessary step to take. Good show here, as they’re starting to make the fans’ mouths water again.

Results

Roderick Strong/Pete Dunne b. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch – End of Heartache to Burch

Ember Moon b. Aliyah – Eclipse

Adam Cole b. Kassius Ohno – Last Shot

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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: March 20, 2018
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

And then, Daniel Bryan was cleared to medically return to the ring. I’m really not sure what else there is to say here as now we wait to see what this means for Bryan at Wrestlemania. There’s a good chance that he gets the spot in a tag match with Shane McMahon against Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn but maybe it’s something else. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look at Daniel Bryan’s retirement in February 2016 in an emotional moment. Then news broke today that Bryan was cleared to return to the ring after FINALLY being medically cleared. I think we have a theme for tonight.

Here’s Bryan to open things up. He needs to address the actions of Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens from last week….but they’re not here yet so we need to talk about something else. Bryan talks about being grateful for everything he has, which was the theme of his retirement speech. He has the greatest fans in the world and an amazing, beautiful wife who stood by him the entire way. It was her who told him to keep going to see specialist after specialist to get him back in the ring. Fans: “THANK YOU BRIE!”

Then when he got depressed, he decided to fight and it was Brie who told him to fight for his dreams. Eventually he was told he was cleared and those dreams became a reality. Next, Bryan needs to thank all of the doctors who kept giving him clearances until the WWE doctors finally did the same. Bryan isn’t sure when he’ll be back in the ring so here’s a WRESTLEMANIA chant to give him an idea. No announcement is made but the fans (including myself) are thrilled.

Bryan is looking for Sami and Owens but finds Ziggler, who is rather condescending about the return. Ziggler can’t wait to beat him and Bryan wishes him luck trying.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev

AJ Styles is on commentary. They waste no time in trading the hard kicks with Rusev throwing him into the corner and unloading. A spinwheel kick drops Nakamura for two and we take a break. Back with Nakamura firing off kicks, including one to the side of a kneeling Rusev’s head. Rusev gets in a kick to the head of his own for two so Nakamura goes for a cross armbreaker. That’s rolled through but Nakamura grabs the leg for the rollup pin at 7:50.

Rating: C. It’s nice to have Nakamura get a pin but they haven’t exactly put their foot on the gas to get him to Wrestlemania. That and having him win in less than eight minutes with nearly half of that being in a commercial isn’t your traditional build. At least Nakamura is in the ring though and that helps a lot.

Post match Rusev and Aiden English beat Nakamura down and AJ takes his time getting up. Nakamura saves himself and stares down at AJ.

Video on Asuka.

Charlotte is in the back when Natalya comes in to say she knows how scared Charlotte is. A match is set up for later. I know I mention this a lot but Natalya is one of the weakest talkers in the company today. It’s like a bad high school play.

Styles and Nakamura run into each other with AJ mocking him for saying he’ll win. Nakamura says he’ll win with a knee to the face.

Baron Corbin vs. Tye Dillinger

Both are in the Andre battle royal. Dillinger chops away but gets knocked down with one hard shot. Graves buries Dillinger on commentary, asking about why he wastes every opportunity he receives. Corbin slides under the ropes but gets caught with a kick to the face. Back up and Corbin can’t hit End of Days (as in couldn’t pick Dillinger up for it in a nasty looking botch). Instead he sends Dillinger outside and then tries again a few seconds later, this time connecting for the pin at 2:31.

Charlotte vs. Natalya

Non-title. Charlotte gets two off an early suplex and a bridging rollup gets the same. The Figure Four necklock rolling flips keep Natalya in trouble and a kick to the chest puts her on the floor. Back from a break with Charlotte fighting out of an abdominal stretch and throwing her over with a t-bone suplex. A big boot looks to set up the Figure Eight but Natalya crawls into the corner.

That earns her a Downward Spiral into the buckle, only to have Natalya come back with a Batista Bomb out of the corner for a close two. The Sharpshooter is broken up in a hurry so it’s the discus lariat for two on Charlotte instead. They head outside where the spear connects and Charlotte slaps on the Figure Four back inside.

That’s rolled over though and Charlotte lands in the ropes but bends backwards over the apron to really crank on the leg. It’s fine enough to superplex Charlotte down for a big crash….and here’s Carmella! Charlotte is up with a boot to Carmella though, allowing Natalya to roll her up for the pin at 13:09. The cash-in was never official.

Rating: B. These two were beating the heck out of each other and then that stupid briefcase brought me right back down. I’m so sick of the thing hanging over everything because Heaven forbid we don’t do it every single year. Anyway, Charlotte losing doesn’t make sense here as it’s NATALYA of all people. She’s lost to Charlotte time after time but needs to get a pin here? Really?

Jimmy Uso vs. Harper

Rating: D+. This was the right call again as the Usos continue to get closer but still can’t beat the Brothers. Harper and Rowan look like the most awesome monsters in years, but they need to actually announce the match already. We’re two weeks away and the title match still isn’t set. What are they waiting on anymore?

Here are Jinder Mahal and Sunil Singh to talk about Mahal being added to…..ok I give up. As I type this, Mahal is bragging about being added to the match and OH DEAR GOODNESS I DO NOT CARE! It’s the same horrible promo he’s cut every single week about how rich and awesome he is and how he deserves this and I cannot even pretend to care anymore. Roode and Orton come out, they talk a lot, a brawl nearly breaks out but they all stare at each other.

Sarah Logan/Liv Morgan vs. Naomi/Becky Lynch

All four are in the battle royal. Becky gets double teamed in the corner to start and Logan adds a running knee to the face for two. It’s off to a cobra clutch for a bit before a spinebuster has Lynch in more trouble. She’s fine enough to throw Logan over the top but Ruby Riott tosses her back inside. Not that it matters as the Disarm-Her makes Logan tap at 2:35 as Naomi cuts Morgan off.

Bryan is told that Zayn and Owens are here so he’ll meet them in the ring.

Back from a break and Bryan is in the ring to see Owens and Zayn. Owens talks about taking their time getting here but Shane McMahon wasn’t going to be here so it wasn’t a big deal. Then they heard what happened and got over here as soon as they could. They had to get out of a speeding ticket but it was easy because everyone is dumber in Texas. Sami is happy with the news because Bryan has always been their biggest fan.

It’s a classic case of good things happening to good people and any show with the three of them on it is the dream show. It sounds like a dream team, but that’s not why Bryan wanted them out here. Bryan shows a clip of the two of them attacking Shane to end last week’s show, which they find funny. That’s not cool with Bryan but Sami says Shane deserved it. Bryan thinks they don’t get it.

Shane was right: Bryan was living vicariously through the two of them, but last week was more than getting a little carried away. The thing is Sami and Kevin won because Shane agreed that he had gone too far. They had a match set up for Wrestlemania, which was all they had ever wanted. Imagine the three of them being told that at an armory in front of 300 people ten years ago.

They would have had Bryan in his corner to run the show but they still assaulted Shane. Bryan doesn’t get it but he’s been fired from this company twice and grown from it each time. The two of them are fired and are so shocked that they can’t speak. Owens goes to leave but decks Bryan, followed by some screaming that Bryan did this.

Bryan fights back with kicks in the corner and a snap German suplex to Sami, followed by the running corner dropkicks. Referees come out as Owens takes the YES Kicks but Sami gets back up for the save. Bryan eats a Helluva Kick and the apron powerbomb makes things even worse to end the show.

Well that worked. This gives you a logical path to the tag match (Sami and Kevin have changed from the men Bryan knew years ago and the attack on Shane was unnecessary) and gives Sami and Kevin a ton of heat at the same time. It’s a good angle, but more than that it’s bizarre to see Bryan taking bumps after two years of just talking. Good segment though and I’m excited for the match.

Overall Rating: C+. This show did what it needed to do as it advanced a bunch of stories towards Wrestlemania. As mentioned though, there’s a lot of stuff you can pencil in but it’s high time to bust out the ink. Bryan being back is a huge deal, but there’s other stuff that needs to be done and WWE is dragging its feet like crazy right now. I don’t get it, but they need to get on with it already.

Results

Shinsuke Nakamura b. Rusev – Rollup

Baron Corbin b. Tye Dillinger – End of Days

Natalya b. Charlotte – Rollup

Harper b. Jimmy Uso – Discus Lariat

Naomi/Becky Lynch b. Sarah Logan/Liv Morgan – Disarm-Her to Morgan

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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