So this is something kind of interesting. A few weeks ago, someone asked me to rank the current wrestling shows that I watch from most to least enjoyable. I’ve heard of worse ideas so let’s take a look. Keep in mind that these are only the current shows and the only ones that I watch, so you won’t see many surprises in here.

1. NXT

Like it was going to be anything else. This show is the most enjoyable thing that happens to wrestling fans and one of the best weekly TV shows ever. They never get boring, their worst show is still better than almost anything anyone else produces, and it somehow keeps getting better. They’ve figured out exactly how to do the one hour a week wrestling TV show and I look forward to seeing it every time. This was #1 by a few laps and nothing is in its universe.

2. Smackdown

The more I think about Smackdown, the more frustrated I get at Raw. This show is proof of what WWE is capable of doing and how well they can still put together a big show. While it’s certainly not great, it’s a show that is both entertaining and well done, which is a rare sight on the main roster. The wrestling is good, the promos are better, and there’s a fun feeling here that you don’t get on Monday. Smackdown is very good, and evidence that WWE still knows what it’s doing.

3. 205 Live

If Mustafa Ali was still around, this would have been second. What used to be a terrible show that was little more than a chore to watch has turned into one of the best things going in WWE today. The action ranges from solid to great and it has the best non William Regal boss in WWE with Drake Maverick (must be a British thing). They bring in new talent and have a formula that works very well. Plus Maria Kanellis and that’s never a bad thing.

KEEP GOING!

4. Fusion

I know I talk about this show a lot but it’s become a well done wrestling show. It’s nothing that’s going to blow you away but for about fifty minutes a week, you get a nice blend of action in front of an entertained crowd with some talent you might have be overly familiar with. They’ve put something together in just a few months and it’s a perfectly enjoyable show. Check these guys out if you haven’t, as their show goes up on YouTube every Saturday night.

5. NXT UK

This place gets a hard time, but it’s really not that bad. The problem is the way the show is scheduled rather than what they actually do, and that’s not their fault. The other main issue is calling it NXT, which comes with a very heavy burden. It doesn’t offer anything that a show like Progress doesn’t do better, but the WWE production helps a lot. This is far from bad and cutting it back to an hour a week is going to do wonders for them.

6. Impact Wrestling

Yeah seriously. I know the show has the worst reputation in wrestling and a lot of that is justified, but they’ve gotten a lot better in the last year and a half. It’s still not a masterpiece or even a great show most of the time, but it’s watchable and the stories make sense. That’s a fine place for them to be and if they can continue taking the little steps forward, they might be able to rewrite some of their legacy. Just find a way to make the main events feel epic and they’re well on their way.

JUST AROUND THE BEND!

7. Ring of Honor

This show is the definition of feast or famine. When they’re on, they’re very on and can produce some of the best shows around. When they’re off though, it feels like a low rent promotion took a TV station hostage and ran their show. The women’s division is still a disaster and some of their other stuff isn’t that much better, but they know how to do the wild matches and athletic displays quite well. It’s a watchable show, but not something I really look forward to most of the time.

8. Main Event

Yes a recap show is somehow not on the bottom of the list. This show actually offers a nice service by showcasing the shortened version of the WWE week. The original wrestling occasionally will be entertaining but this is all about giving you a quick look at Raw and Smackdown. It’s fine for what it is, and that’s all it’s supposed to be.

9. Monday Night Raw

What is there even to say here? I’ve literally never missed an episode of Raw and I don’t remember a time when it felt this hopeless (not bad, but hopeless). It’s like they’re always content with not trying anything and would rather just coast until Wrestlemania season, do the Shakeup, and then get back to coasting again. Feuds go on forever with few people getting elevated, and that leaves you with a bunch of uninteresting people fighting for nothing, because the Intercontinental Title is the top title on the show. Without getting into another Lesnar rant, his absence is killing the biggest wrestling show in the world. That shouldn’t happen, and we’re almost to year three of it being the case. Fix that already, because it’s Raw and not Main Event.

What could be lower than this?

Yeah there’s nothing else here.  Nine shows a week is enough and nothing is beating Raw.

IMG Credit: WWE

Royal Rumble 2003
Date: January 19, 2003
Location: Fleet Center, Boston, Massachusetts
Attendance: 15,338
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

The opening video is your standard montage of wrestlers talking about what it means to go to Wrestlemania because the road starts tonight.

Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar

Chris Jericho is ready to win the Rumble and gets his World Title back at Wrestlemania.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Dudley Boyz vs. William Regal/Lance Storm

Nathan Jones vignette.

Dawn Marie vs. Torrie Wilson

Dawn is in regular ring gear and a black veil, which makes her look more like Jimmy Jack Funk (from the neck up) than anything else. Dawn elbows her in the face at the bell but Torrie takes her down as well as these two are going to be able to do. Torrie gets caught in a Fujiwara armbar as the announcers cover the story in detail. Well the recent part at least as basically everything after Armageddon has been forgotten at this point.

Raw World Title: HHH vs. Scott Steiner

Back in and Steiner charges into a boot to the face before being sent into the steps for good measure. HHH stomps and chokes in the corner with Flair adding choking of his own. Another neckbreaker gets two for the champ and you can see how winded Steiner already is. Flair chokes on the ropes again to fill in as much time as possible before Steiner reverses the Pedigree.

Smackdown World Title: Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle

Royal Rumble

Ratings Comparison

Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: D

2013 Redo: C+

2017 Redo: D+

Dudley Boyz vs. William Regal/Lance Storm

Original: C

2013 Redo: D

2017 Redo: C-

Dawn Marie vs. Torrie Wilson

Original: DD

2013 Redo: D-

2017 Redo: F

Scott Steiner vs. HHH

Original: G-

2013 Redo: H (For HHH)

Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle

Original: A+

2013 Redo: A+

2017 Redo: A+

Royal Rumble

Original: B

2013 Redo: B-

2017 Redo: B

Overall Rating

Original: B-

2013 Redo: C-

2017 Redo: B-

This is a rare instance where the original is much closer to the new ratings than the first redo. Maybe I was in a bad mood that day?

You can read the original review here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/01/22/royal-rumble-count-up-2003-best-match-ever/

And the 2013 redo here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/01/16/royal-rumble-count-up-2013-redo-2003-best-of-both-worlds-and-a-boring-rumble/

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

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

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

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

This is old and horrible so I apologize in advance.

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: January 11, 1993
Location: Manhattan Center, Manhattan, New York
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Rob Bartlett, Randy Savage

Well since it’s the anniversary of this, why not do it? Raw more or less ended SNME which I’ll do that last original episode soon enough, as in about an hour from now. This is the show that completely revolutionized wrestling as it was the first show to be aired weekly on prime time cable. The production values were WAY up also as the lighting and the effects were stuff that was unheard of. We’re gearing up for the 93 Rumble which kind of sucked but whatever. Let’s get to it.

Sean Mooney who I didn’t think had a job at this point welcomes us to the show and keeps Heenan from coming in. This would become a running joke on the first few shows until Monsoon threw him out of the company. The arena looks small but cool. Rob Bartlett was a comedian from the Don Imus show and he is easily the worst announcer of all time but to be fair, I’ve read some comments from him since and he completely admits that he was awful, so at least he’s not delusional.

Koko B. Ware vs. Yokozuna

Koko comes out to what would become Owen’s music which makes sense as they were partners around this time. I wonder what’s going to happen here. They say their first swear word on the air which might be a first in company history. The tag line was uncooked, uncut and uncensored. I never got the uncooked part. How is that appealing? Bartlett just makes fat jokes about Yoko which makes sense. Vince is about as excited as humanly possible to be here. Bartlett makes jokes implying that Koko is Gary Coleman which is kind of funny but just out of place here. After Koko gets in no offense for about 4 minutes, the Banzai Drop ends this.

Rating: N/A. It was a glorified squash which is fine. I’m not sure how good this was for the first match in history but that’s fine I guess. This was just to push Yoko so that certainly accomplished its job. A lot of the earlier shows were almost all squashes so get used to it.

Ad for the Rumble.

We get a prerecorded interview from Heenan who talks about Perfect being scared of Narcissus, who was more commonly known as Luger. Heenan is WAY too excited about Luger.

Steiner Brothers vs. Executioners

The Executioners are masked jobbers as if it matters. That goofy clown as Vince calls him is at ringside and gets too much attention. Apparently his name is Doink. As for the match, are you really expecting anything other than total destruction? Apparently Mitch Ferhat, a former Buffalo Bill, is coming to the WWF. He never got there. The Steiner Bulldog ends it.

Rating: N/A. It was more or less the same thing as we got a match earlier, but with two guys instead of one. This is fine as it establishes two dominant forces for new fans which is a good idea.

A woman says that she’s Bartlett’s aunt. Naturally it’s Heenan in drag. This simply does not get old.

Razor Ramon comes out for a “special” interview. He’s fighting Bret for the title at the Rumble in case you didn’t know. It’s exactly what you would expect it to be as it’s just Ramon talking about Bret and how he’ll win the title and we see a clip of him beating up Owen on Superstars, which is why Owen isn’t here tonight.

Ad for Headlock on Hunger, which was a charity thing they were doing at the time to feed hungry people in Somalia.

Tatanka likes the Headlock on Hunger.

Intercontinental Title: Max Moon vs. Shawn Michaels

Max Moon may or may not have been Konnan. Shawn is just getting used to being a midcard deal so don’t expect much here. I don’t think it’s him here as it might be Paul Diamond, who was one of the Orient Express. We get more and more New York jokes from Bartlett that only a handful of people would get. He was great on a morning talk show but WAY off on a wrestling show.

They get the three un line here twice in one match as they try so hard to get that over as a tagline before they realized it sucked. Bartlett, in something that blows my mind, does an impression of Mike Tyson calling into the show from prison. This goes on over two minutes. Make that three. THEY’RE STILL DOING IT.

Seriously they did this for half of the match. Is this supposed to be funny or something? Am I supposed to be amused? After what felt like forever, Shawn hits the kick and that stupid suplex that he was using as his finisher at the time for the pin.

Rating: C+. It was an average match, but it had the DUMBEST commentary in recorded history. The match gets bonus points for being ok with those voices going though so there we are.

Ad for WWF Mania, a Saturday morning show.

Gene does the control center for the Rumble, which more or less is him talking about the major matches and we get promos from some of the guys in said matches, in this case Shawn and Marty. This is short but it was very effective at summarizing the entire show into a 3 minute video. Well done. We run down some people in the Rumble and get comments from Perfect. Ok now this needs to end as it’s about five minutes now. This was the first winner gets a title shot and it’s at 4pm. That’s just odd.

We have an Amish man trying to get inside. Guess who it is. He asks if anyone knows how to get onto the roof. I feel like I’m watching a Trix Cereal commercial. Also, WHERE DOES HE GET THESE COSTUMES???

Kamala exists and that’s about it.

Damien Demento vs. Undertaker

Who else would you get to main event the first show? Bartlett makes fun of Taker and I’m already tired of him. Demento is the guy that freaked out on youtube recently and freaked out about modern wrestling. He’s annoying as all goodness and this is his career highlight. We go over the matches for next week and that’s about all that happens in this match. The Tombstone ends this quickly.

Rating: N/A. It’s like 3 minutes long and it’s more or less a squash. That’s not that interesting.

Doink sprays Crush with water to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This started off ok but it felt like there was no flow to it at all. It just wasn’t that good of a show as far as establishing people like it was supposed to do. This show definitely assumed that most people were long time fans of the show and that’s not a good idea to do on a brand new main show.

Still though, this is one of those shows everyone should see at least once as it truly did completely revolutionize wrestling. Definitely take a look at it if you never have before or just to compare it to modern wrestling and see how much things have changed.

Thomas Hall has been a wrestling fan for over thirty years and has seen over 50,000 wrestling matches. He has also been a wrestling reviewer since 2009 with over 5,000 full shows covered. You can find his work at kbwrestlingreviews.com, or check out his Amazon author page with 28 wrestling books. His latest book is the the Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews.

Get the latest and greatest in professional wrestling news by signing up for our daily email newsletter. Just look below for “GET EXCLUSIVE UPDATES” to sign up. We are proud to offer our popular Wrestling Rumors app and encourage you to download it for an optimized user experience. It is available for Android and also on iOS. Thank you for reading!

The old version was awful so here’s a slightly better look.

IMG Credit: WWE

Fully Loaded 1999
Date: July 25, 1999
Location: Marine Midland Arena, Buffalo, New York
Attendance: 16,605
Commentators: Jim Ross Jerry Lawler

Earlier tonight, Undertaker attacked Austin and busted him open as the McMahons looked on.

Austin is looked at by a doctor.

The McMahons deny having anything to do with the attack. Vince guarantees Austin loses tonight.

Intercontinental Title: Edge vs. Jeff Jarrett

Edge is actually defending after winning the title the previous night at a house show. Jeff has Debra with him, who comes out in a green bikini with a jacket. Before the match, Jeff says no one is seeing the Puppies because they belong to him, just like that title. Feeling out process to start with Edge taking him to the mat for a half nelson rollup. Edge fakes Jarrett out with a middle rope cross body and gets two more off a sunset flip.

Jarrett grabs the title and teases walking out but uses it to sucker Edge out to the floor for a whip into the steps. Back in and Jeff starts going after the legs in his best Ric Flair impression, minus the charisma of course. Things get even better when Edge goes shoulder first into the post. Jeff switches over to the arm (to be fair he had barely started on the leg) before flapjacking the champ for two.

Tag Team Titles: Acolytes vs. Hardy Boys/Michael Hayes

Al Snow has been even more insane since a spike has been put through Head. Snow talks about how he hears the screams all the time and wants someone to put him out of his misery.

Hardcore Title: Al Snow vs. Big Boss Man

Snow is defending and drops to his knees in front of Boss Man in the aisle, begging to be put down. Instead Snow grabs Head and hits the spike with his nightstick, which finally makes Snow aggressive like his normal (work with me here) self. They fight over to some empty seats before Boss Man hits him back through the entrance to really make this hardcore.

Big Show vs. Kane

X-Pac comes in to drop Holly with a kick, only to have Undertaker come out and help Big Show beat X-Pac and Kane down. This is the kind of thing you should be doing on TV, not pay per view.

Speaking of things you should do on TV, Austin attacks Undertaker as he comes through the curtain and sends him into a wall to bust Undertaker open.

Ken Shamrock vs. Steve Blackman

Undertaker roughs up Terry Taylor for trying to interview him.

Chyna/Billy Gunn vs. Road Dogg/X-Pac

We recap HHH vs. The Rock, which is the rekindling of an old feud. They had an outstanding feud over the course of 1998 with HHH getting the final win in a ladder match. Now the roles are reversed as both guys want to be the WWF World Champion, which Rock has already been multiple times). At one point during this feud, HHH put Rock in a casket and beat on it with a sledgehammer in the first appearance of his signature weapon.

The Rock vs. HHH

Strap match won by pinfall (which counts anywhere) for the #1 contendership at Summerslam. HHH comes out to his awesome My Time theme music. The brawl starts in the aisle with Rock sending him into the post for an early advantage. HHH comes back with a few whips into the barricade and shots to the ribs before taking Rock inside for more of the same.

We recap Austin vs. Undertaker. Austin took the title back from Undertaker on Raw after Undertaker won it 24 hours earlier in the highest rated wrestling match in American cable TV history. Undertaker wanted his rematch to be a first blood match, which is how Austin lost his first WWF World Title, thanks to Undertaker interfering. If Austin wins, Vince is off TV forever. If Undertaker wins, Austin can never have another shot at the title.

WWF World Title: Undertaker vs. Steve Austin

First Blood with Austin defending and Vince on commentary. Austin goes after him in the aisle (a common tactic on this show) and gets sent into the barricade. We even get some common sense as Austin covers his face while Undertaker throws punches. Undertaker beats him up the aisle but neither guy can send the other into the steps. Austin ducks the steps as they fly at his head and they fight into the crowd.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 19, 1999
Location: Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky
Attendance: 12,939
Commentators: Jim Ross, Kevin Kelly

Now how did I not go to this one? This is the go home show for Fully Loaded and….egads I have no idea what happened last time and it wasn’t that long ago that I watched it. That’s the real problem with Russo’s insane booking: nothing has a chance to stick and if you’re not watching every single week, you’re going to be completely lost. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap (thank goodness) of Steve Austin agreeing to some special stipulations in his match with Undertaker on Sunday. If Austin wins, Vince McMahon is gone forever but if Undertaker wins, Undertaker gets the title and Austin is never allowed to challenge for the title again. I really shouldn’t need this less than a month after I last watched this show.

Opening sequence.

Here’s the Corporate Ministry, with Vince in a wheelchair, to open things up. Vince says this is an historic night because it’s the last night Austin will ever be here as the WWF Champion. The stakes have never been higher and in reality, it’s Undertaker’s career on the line this Sunday. Undertaker isn’t cool with that because no one threatens him. He’s fine with opening Austin up on Sunday, but it’s personal and not business.

Vince says he signs Undertaker’s check and made him who he is today. That’s even less cool with Undertaker, so HHH intervenes to start another argument. HHH knows that Vince made him and knows his place so give him a chance to pay the boss back. Vince isn’t sure if he can trust Undertaker so tonight, it’s Undertaker vs. HHH with the winner facing Austin for the title on Sunday. The loser gets to face the Rock in the strap match.

Post break, Vince is worried but HHH says it’s cool. If Vince takes care of him, HHH will do the same.

Road Dogg vs. Chyna

This is a Dog Pound match, which means Dog Collar, because Russo needs to change the name of one of the most obvious gimmicks ever. Chyna won’t put it on (even though Dogg heard she and HHH had something like it last night) so Dogg punches her down, drawing in Billy Gunn to hang Dogg. X-Pac comes out for the save and threatens them with the chain. The bell never rang so no match.

The bosses panic when someone knocks on Vince’s door but it’s the Mean Street Posse.

Post break here are Shane and the Mean Street Posse for a chat. Shane wants to apologize to Stephanie because it’s the right thing to do. After telling Test that it’ll be ok, here she is in the arena. Shane makes it clear that he didn’t hit Stephanie on purpose and it was really Test’s fault because he let everything get out of control.

He’s been working to make things better though and Joey Abs is willing to take Stephanie back so it can be like it was supposed to. Stephanie says they went out once and it was a nightmare. Joey says he knows Stephanie blew it the first time with him but he’s willing to take her back. That earns him a slap and Stephanie storms off. Shane promises to do things mean street style.

Rock signs an autograph. Ok then.

We see the press conference announcing that Jesse Ventura will be at Summerslam.

Tag Team Titles: Val Venis/Godfather vs. Acolytes vs. Hardy Boyz vs. Prince Albert/Droz

The Hardys are defending and this is elimination rules. Ivory is one of Godfather’s ladies again. Bradshaw slams Matt to start but it’s off to Albert to catch Bradshaw in a powerslam. A side slam sets up a splash for two but Bradshaw is right back up with the Clothesline for the elimination. Venis comes in and hammers away until Bradshaw catches him in a fall away slam.

Val hits a spinebuster so Bradshaw tags Jeff….and then hits him in the back. Godfather’s big legdrop gets two on Jeff and it’s off to Bradshaw, who gets hit in the head with a cane for the pin. That leaves us with Venis/Godfather vs. the Hardys and Godfather hits the Ho Train on Matt. The Pimp Drop (Death Valley Driver) but Jeff hurricanranas Val down, awakening Matt for the fast pin.

Rating: D. So before the Acolytes get their regular title shot on Sunday, we have a four way elimination match for the titles on Monday? Is that really the best choice of booking? And to have the Acolytes get eliminated in the middle by a team they’re not facing in the title match? This is one of the screwiest booking decisions I’ve seen in a long time, or maybe just since the start of the show.

Jeff Jarrett tells Debra not to say anything tonight.

GTV shows us actor Ben Stiller and his friends talking about the show. It’s a plug for the upcoming Mystery Men movie but Stiller would rather check out Debra’s puppies. This includes burying his face in them, though they see the camera and aren’t happy.

Lawler is on commentary now and just in time.

Intercontinental Title: Jeff Jarrett vs. Christian

Jeff is defending and has Debra with her. Before the match, Jeff tells Austin to stay away from him and the belt or Austin will be turned into a pair of boots. Christian wastes no time in getting two off a powerbomb and the reverse DDT is good for the same. A high crossbody draws Debra to the apron as Christian hits the yet to be named Killswitch. That means a very delayed two so Jeff goes outside for the guitar. Christian takes it away but the referee takes it away as well, setting up the also yet to be named Stroke for the pin to retain Jeff’s title. Energetic while it lasted.

Post match the lights go out and Jarrett gets a Bloodbath. Edge comes out and brawls with Jarrett.

HHH sends Chyna to the ring with Billy Gunn and offers to take care of Vince.

During the break, Jeff yelled about Edge.

The Rock vs. Billy Gunn

Before the match, Rock says Billy isn’t feeling good but it’s probably just a little bit of Rock Fever. Billy can come out here and get his temperature taken. I think you get the joke here. The fight starts before the bell with Gunn getting in a few stomps as we officially get going. The Stinger Splash hits Rock but he comes out of the corner with that hard clothesline he uses when he comes out of the corner and needs a move like a hard clothesline.

Rock hits another clothesline but gets sent over the top with one of those really good looking jumps. Gunn posts him, which JR says wouldn’t even taste good with barbecue sauce. The chipolte ketchup would do it though. Back in and a Jackhammer sets up a chinlock as JR recaps the evening for Lawler. Rock fights up and hits a Samoan drop for a double knockdown.

The real comeback starts with the right hands in the corner and a hot shot of all things. There’s the Maivia Hurricane to draw Chyna up to the apron for a distraction but Rock hits the Rock Bottom anyway. Chyna chairs him down to break up the People’s Elbow though and the Fameasser gives Gunn the pin.

Rating: D+. I know they saw something in Gunn for years but as soon as the theme music comes on again, the joke gets old all over again. Gunn beating Rock at any time never felt right and continues to show how Rock wasn’t up to Austin’s level while he was still around. We’re getting closer and closer to Rock’s huge run and while he’s a big deal, he’s not Austin and won’t be for a long time.

HHH and Vince chat a bit more.

Big Boss Man vs. Al Snow

Snow’s Hardcore Title isn’t on the line here but he’s still insane after the spike was put through Head. Boss Man stands in the ring as Snow throws in a bunch of chairs. He throws in a prosthetic leg for a bonus and demands that Boss Man hit him. Boss Man does just that, knocking Snow cold with the nightstick for the DQ.

As a bonus, Boss Man cuffs him to the top rope for more stick shots. Snow looks elated and Boss Man is just confused. I’ll sign up on Boss Man’s side.

Edge/D’Lo Brown vs. Mideon/Gangrel

Brown is challenging Mideon for the European Title on Sunday in case this feels very random. It’s a brawl to start with Edge punching Mideon on the floor as Brown takes over on Gangrel inside. Things settle down to Edge and Mideon crawling around on the mat until Edge takes over with an armbar. Edge slips out of a slam and takes Mideon down, allowing the tag off to Brown. Everything breaks down and it’s a Sky High into the Low Down to finish Mideon.

Test vs. Steve Blackman

Blackman is a hired gun to take Test out. Speaking of Test going out, he heads outside to start beating Blackman up before the bell but a hard shoulder takes him down back inside. Test shrugs off a half crab but walks into a spinebuster to put him right back down. The bicycle kick misses though and Test hits a gutwrench powerbomb. It’s time for the pumphandle powerslam but here are Shane and the Posse for the DQ.

Ken Shamrock makes the save with a baseball bat and stares Blackman down before their fight on Sunday.

Countdown to the Millennium.

Blackman left during the break. This has been vital information.

Big Show/Hardcore Holly vs. X-Pac/Kane

X-Pac tells Kane to leave but has to settle for Kane fighting Show on the floor. That leaves Holly to hit the Falcon Arrow and go outside after Kane. Cue Undertaker to chokeslam X-Pac for….not a DQ, even though the referee was in the ring and telling Undertaker not to do it. Undertaker grabs the steps to take out both Holly and Show as we’ll go with the no contest because disqualifications don’t exist around here.

Post match (I guess?), Kane goes back to the ring to help X-Pac up but Undertaker tells him it’s over. Kane sees a replay of Undertaker attacking X-Pac though and that means a chokeslam to Undertaker. So is that a face turn? Or a heel unturn? Why is this so complicated Undertaker isn’t happy as Kane and X-Pac leave together.

HHH vs. Undertaker

The winner challenges Austin on Sunday but the loser faces Rock in a #1 contenders match. HHH has Chyna, plus Vince in a wheelchair, with him. For reasons unclear, Undertaker does a full entrance again despite being in the ring after the previous match. They slug it out to start (well duh) with Undertaker getting the better of it and knocking HHH out to the floor. That goes nowhere so they head back inside with Undertaker charging into an elbow.

A clothesline puts Undertaker outside again and a Chyna distraction lets HHH knock him into the steps. Undertaker hits a quick Stunner over the top rope as this is actually resembling a match so far. And since we haven’t had enough drama so far, we cut to the back where Austin says he’s coming for McMahon’s blood right now. Cue Austin to go after Undertaker for the DQ.

Rating: D+. I’ll take what I can get on this show as they certainly aren’t pushing the wrestling so far. It was a lot of punching and kicking for a few minutes but at least we got something with a coherent point. Austin running in wasn’t surprising as they already had both matches set up for Sunday and there was no reason to change anything. That would bring up the question of why you book these stipulations in the first place but the internet isn’t big enough to explain all the holes in logic.

Post match the fight is on with Rock running in to join the fight. Undertaker and Austin fight up by the blood mobile with Austin throwing him in the back. HHH and Chyna are gone and reality sets in for Vince in a hurry. Austin comes back to ringside and hits Vince in the head with the belt to bust him open. Naturally he uses the blood to sign the Fully Loaded contract and beer is consumed. That doesn’t end the show though as Undertaker comes back (having used his evil powers to open an unlocked door) and nails Austin with a beer can to bust him open. Posing with the title wraps up the show.

Overall Rating: D. It’s more of the same, but they did have a slightly better focus this week because of the pay per view. The problem of course is how everything comes and goes with no particular reason, including stories that aren’t explained and matches that are too short to be anything more than quick appearances. Things will get better in a few months, but that doesn’t make this time any easier to watch.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Royal Rumble 2002
Date: January 20, 2002
Location: Phillips Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
Attendance: 12,915
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

Tag Titles: Spike Dudley/Tazz vs. Dudley Boys

We immediately go to a recap of Regal vs. Edge which is based on Regal using brass knuckles over and over again. Edge got fed up with it and beat up a lot of people with a chair.

Intercontinental Title: Edge vs. William Regal

Ric Flair vs. Vince McMahon

No highlight package for the world title match? For those of you not around in 2002 (LUCKY!), Jericho won the title in December, beating Rock along the way. It makes sense for Rock to get the first shot, especially since they feuded over the end of the year.

WWF World Title: The Rock vs. Chris Jericho

Shawn Michaels, in a really stupid looking Texas flag shirt, is at WWF New York. He picks Taker or Austin to win the Rumble.

Video on the Rumble. The main picks to win are Taker, HHH, Angle and Austin.

Royal Rumble

Scotty gets in and walks into a DDT as DDP is #14. Nothing of note continues to happen until Scotty superkicks Page through the ropes to the floor and hits the Worm on Christian. Page sneaks back in and throws Scotty out as Chuck is #15. They all beat on each other for a bit with Christian and Chuck teaming up for a bit. Godfather, now the owner of an escort service in an attempt to salvage the gimmick, is #16 and brings out 12 good looking women with him. Page is eliminated off camera during this.

Ratings Comparison

Spike Dudley/Tazz vs. Billy and Chuck

Original: C-

Redo: D+

William Regal vs. Edge

Original: C-

Redo: D+

Trish Stratus vs. Jazz

Original: D+

Redo: D

Ric Flair vs. Vince McMahon

Original: D+

Redo: C+

Chris Jericho vs. The Rock

Original: B+

Redo: B

Royal Rumble

Original: C-

Redo: C+

Overall Rating

Original: B-

Redo: B-

Yep, about the same for the most part here.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/01/21/royal-rumble-count-up-2002-game-on/

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #37
Date: January 4, 2019
Location: Scottish Rite Temple, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

How are we over nine months of this show? We’re still down in Miami after last week’s attempted murder.. This week is a bit of a nicer note as Pentagon faces Teddy Hart in what should be a preview of a Tag Team Title match. There’s other stuff around here besides people being stabbed in the kidneys so let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s attack on Konnan, which still doesn’t feel right. Tom Lawlor made the save, albeit after the stabbing.

Opening sequence.

LA Park vs. Gringo Loco

They take turns playing to the crowd before the bell and the fans are WAY behind Loco here. A hug sets up some posing together before the match, allowing Park to get in a cheap shot and take over. How rudo. They go outside into the crowd to avoid the whole wrestling thing early on. That means a lot of walking around with an occasional punch thrown until it’s back to the ring for the Park strut.

The dueling chants begin, much to Park’s annoyance. Park gets in a few belt shots to make the fans gasp instead of cheer, which is quite the change of pace. They head outside again with Park powerbombing him through a pair of chairs, with Tony talking about how it should be ok as long as no one bleeds. Park finds a Mexican flag to wrap around his head, drawing a USA chant.

Back in and Park gives us some pelvic thrusts (I didn’t need to see that) but misses a charge in the corner. Another strut takes too much time, allowing Loco to hit a double springboard into a cutter for a rather near fall, freaking Salina out horribly. Loco throws him outside for a flip dive and a dropkick through the ropes keeps Park in trouble.

It’s time to head to the entrance with Loco diving off the set with a crossbody for a huge dive. Back in and Loco takes his sweet time loading up Spiral Tap, allowing Park to roll away with no problem. Park stops to yell at the referee and accidentally crushes him twice in a row. He’s fine enough to see Park hit a spear and then count a pretty fast three at 12:18 though.

Rating: C. This is a match where you have to keep in mind what you’re getting. They made no secret about the fact that this was going to be a fight instead of a wrestling match and that helps things out a bit. Neither seems like they’re going to be able to wrestle a mat classic so go with what they can do instead. It’s the best they can do so go with that instead of embarrassing themselves.

Post match Park makes some rather sexual gestures to some people in the crowd.

Kotto Brazil talks about Ricky Martinez attacking him in the nightclub. He has to wear an eye patch for the time being but he’ll get his revenge.

Here are the fines from Promociones Dorado TRYING TO KILL Konnan:

Salina: $15,000

Low Ki: $15,000

Ricky Martinez: $7,500

Hijo de LA Park: $7,500

Not a bad place to be after what they did on national TV.

On the phone, Konnan says he’s in bad shape and promises to give Low Ki and company what’s coming to them.

Low Ki talks about how Tom Lawlor got started at Battle Riot and now he’s coming for the title. Tom isn’t a conqueror though and Low Ki is going to make an example out of Tom in front of his children.

Fred Yehi is back from his three month international tour but he’s been keeping up with what’s been going on around here. That’s why he wants to fight Low Ki with his bald head next week. A fight, not a match.

We look back at Ace Romero defeating Simon Gotch last week to win $20,000.

Romero is going to spend half the money on food and half on something that makes his eyebrows go up. He’s coming for the World Title though.

It’s time for the Super Fight Control Center. This includes the Lucha Bros vs. the Hart Foundation for the Tag Team Titles plus a few people who don’t have matches yet.

Next week: Tommy Dreamer vs. Brian Pillman Jr. in a Singapore Cane match.

Dreamer talks about the history of the cane and how painful it can be in a variety of ways. He brings up the original caning match in ECW (of course) and how much damage, both physical and mental, has been done to him over the years. Pillman doesn’t know what he’s in for.

Teddy Hart vs. Pentagon

Non-title. The Hart Foundation plus a former University of Miami football player are in Hart’s corner while Pentagon is on his own. As a bonus, Smith is now dressed like Hart, which oddly works for him. The fans are behind Hart again, which tends to always be the case, and the announcers have to acknowledge them. CERO MIEDO gets a nice chant of its own though so this is far from one sided. Hart offers a handshake but gets CERO MIEDO instead so Hart punches him down.

They slug it out with Pentagon getting the better of things but Hart reverses a suplex to the floor into a Stunner. Teddy’s hanging piledriver (Orton’s DDT but a piledriver) sends Pentagon to the floor and there’s the moonsault to make things even worse. In the classic heel move of the night, Pillman offers a distraction so Smith can get in a cheap shot. Pentagon fights back against all three Harts at the same time but Hart pops him in the jaw to cut him down.

They fight back to the apron and that means a Canadian Destroyer to crush Hart, though of course he’s right back up a few seconds later. Hart can barely stand and a second Canadian Destroyer, this time from the middle rope, makes things even worse. Since Hart can’t stand, Pentagon ties him in the ropes for the loud chops. Hart can’t manage the walk over Pentagon’s back for the sunset flip so it’s a regular dropkick for some more success. A moonsault gives Hart two and the top rope moonsault elbow gets the same.

Pentagon scores with a superkick in the corner and the Fear Factor (still called the Pentagon Driver here, which has to be a copyright thing or something) gets two on Hart. Something like a Whisper in the Wind drops Pentagon again and now the Lionsault (minus the run) connects for two. Pentagon can’t break the arm as Hart is right back with a Backstabber. A DDT and the powerbomb into a Backstabber finish Pentagon at 11:20.

Rating: B-. The more you watch Hart, the more impressive his comeback really is. To have become the joke that he was for so many years and then turned into this rather impressive performer is nearly remarkable. His matches are entertaining and while they’re a bunch of high spots, they’re well done high spots and that’s enough to keep you around for a long time. Good stuff here, with a win over Pentagon being something worth mentioning.

Overall Rating: B-. The matches were rather good and they advanced the stories well enough. Above all else I’m impressed by how well they’ve managed to build Lawlor vs. Low Ki so many months in advance. I want to see the match, even if it’s the most obvious ending in the world. This show worked quite well and I had a good time, which is always a good thing to be able to say.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Ring of Honor

Ring of Honor
Date: January 9, 2019
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana

I must be confused because it seems that we’re already back to regular shows, even though Final Battle was only a few weeks ago. Usually it’s the better part of a year so this is quite the nice treat. The big stories coming out of the show were Jay Lethal retaining the World Title and the Briscoes winning Ladder War to become ten time Tag Team Champions. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Ian is in the ring with four men who have earned World Title shots as of late: Chris Sabin (Proving Ground match), Flip Gordon (won the Sea of Honor tournament), Dalton Castle (contractually obligated rematch) and Marty Scurll (won the Survival of the Fittest tournament). Tonight it’s a four way with the winner getting a title shot at Honor Reigns Supreme on January 13. Ian introduces Lethal but gets Matt Taven instead.

Taven doesn’t see anyone worthy of getting a shot. It’s good to see Flip’s face again because his head has been buried in the Young Bucks’….yeah you get the idea. Is it 2012 again? That’s the only way Sabin could be relevant in the World Title picture. Marty Scurll must be sad because he’s not tall enough to ride the train to Jacksonville. That leaves him with Castle, who he beat at Final Battle. Go off and fake another injury already. This brings out Jay Lethal, with Taven spitting on the title. The fight is on with referees and agents having to break it up. Nice opening, with Taven FINALLY showing some personality.

Jeff Cobb vs. Luchasaurus

This is a Proving Ground match, meaning if Luchasaurus can win or go to the fifteen minute time limit, he gets a TV Title shot. Luchasaurus kicks him in the head at the bell for an early two and hits a spinning kick to the head for two more. That just earns him a spinning belly to back suplex, followed by Cobb putting him on the top for a dropkick. Luchasaurus kicks him again and hits a chokeslam as we take a break.

Back with Cobb hitting a running uppercut in the corner but walking into a superkick. A jumping kick to the side of the head drops Cobb again but Cobb catches him with a belly to belly superplex. Cobb muscles him up for a piledriver and the Tour of the Islands finishes Luchasaurus off at 6:56.

Rating: C+. There’s something to be said about a monster who can throw around another monster. That’s just not normal no matter how you spin it and that’s what happened here. It’s not a great match or anything, but it’s a fun spectacle and I’ll take that over a standard match most of the time.

Kelly Klein vs. Nikki Addams

Before the match, Kelly grabs the mic and says starting right now, every one on one match she’s in, will be a title match. Dang and I had “non-title again” all ready to go. Klein hits her in the face at the bell and gets crushed in the corner for her efforts. Addams misses a running boot in the corner though and it’s off to a cravate.

Back from a break with Addams backhanding Klein in the head and now the running boot connects for two. Addams takes too long going up top and gets pulled right back down, sending Klein into a fit. K Power is broken up so Kelly knees her in the face to retain at 4:44. Too short to rate but Addams didn’t look great.

Post match here’s Jenny Rose to say they have some unfinished business. They have a match on January 13 so it’s already a title match, but let’s make it a street fight. Klein says it’s on.

Beer City Bruiser is upset that Silas Young won’t talk to him. Brian Milonas says go talk to him in the locker room.

We look at Bully Ray, the Briscoes and Shane Taylor attacking the Elite after their final match. The whole thing is on Honor Club.

Video on Marty Scurll beating Christopher Daniels to end his ROH career at Final Battle.

Here’s Daniels in a suit for a chat. After a THANK YOU DANIELS chant, Daniels says Final Battle wasn’t a good night for SCU. The only thing left for him to do is say goodbye but he’s going to take the memories with him. The memories of the first main event against Low Ki and Bryan Danielson. Of that first World Title match going 60 minutes in 100 degree heat and every opponent who became his friends and brothers. Finally, the memories of becoming World Champion after all those years. He says goodbye but here’s Joe Koff to say thank you as well.

What Daniels did at Final Battle made Koff rethink things. Daniels defended Cary Silkin, who played such a huge role in ROH. That showed Koff that he did it for Ring of Honor and not himself. Therefore, here’s his new contract to continue wrestling around here. Daniels hugs him and holds up the contract but here’s Shane Taylor to jump Daniels from behind.

A dive takes Taylor down and the fight is on but Taylor throws him into the post. They head inside with Taylor kneeing him in the face and blasting him in the back with a chair. Greetings From 216 on the chair wrecks Daniels neck all over again and Taylor rips up the contract. I hope that’s not how Ring of Honor thinks contracts works.

Marty Scurll vs. Chris Sabin vs. Flip Gordon vs. Dalton Castle

One fall to a finish with the winner getting a shot on January 13 with Jay Lethal on commentary just in case Taven isn’t gone. Scurll bails straight to the floor to start and tries to get the fans clapping. Castle gets sent outside so it’s Sabin and Gordon trading some standing switches. That goes nowhere so they dive onto Castle and Scurll to keep the fans into things.

Back in and Sabin missile dropkicks Scurll right back out of the ring and Gordon nearly does the same thing to Castle. Gordon and Sabin don’t seem thrilled to fight each other so Castle cleans house and we take a break. Back with Castle throwing Gordon down again but getting kicked in the chest by Sabin. Marty is right back up to send Sabin outside for the apron superkick, only to get chopped by Gordon.

With Gordon being knocked down, we hit the quadruple submission. Since that’s completely ridiculous, the holds are all broken up and Sabin shoves Scurll off the top, setting up a triple high crossbody. A tornado DDT to Gordon lets Sabin kick the other two down at the same time but Castle is back up with a suplex. Gordon kicks Castle in the head and gets two off a running shooting star press. Sabin snaps off a hurricanrana but Gordon rolls through and scores with an enziguri. It doesn’t do a ton of damage though as Sabin is back up with kicks to Gordon and Scurll but he walks into the Bang a Rang to give Castle the clean pin at 9:04.

Rating: B-. It was a bit wild but that’s kind of the point here. You have to give all four of them title shots at some point and Castle is as good of a next challenger as anyone. It’s pretty clear that this is going to wind up being Taven taking the World Title from Lethal, which is about as uninteresting as you can get. Therefore, enjoy what you can get in the meantime because it’s going to go downhill pretty soon.

Post match Lethal comes in and shakes Castle’s hand to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Good show from top to bottom here with a combination of solid angles and matches. This felt like a good fallout show from Final Battle, which tends to take forever more often than not around here. At least we got a nice show here, even though there’s a lot that still needs to be done. More of this, and this company will get that much better.

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

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

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

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

In case you miss this part, this was written BEFORE the rally.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-awe-aew/

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: August 9, 2004
Location: Gund Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

It’s the go home Raw for Summerslam and the big developments from last week saw Randy Orton pinning Chris Benoit in a six man, plus the long awaited HHH vs. Eugene match being announced. That doesn’t leave a lot to be done this week, but maybe they can put something good enough together. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

The Diva Search starts things off but here’s Randy Orton to cut off the elimination. He grabs the envelope and announces Chandra as the loser of the week. Orton: “AW SHUCKS!” After she leaves, Orton talks about how devastated Chris Benoit is going to be after he loses the World Title on Sunday. It has to hurt deep down inside, knowing that Benoit is going to lose everything he’s worked for. We look back at Orton pinning Benoit last week with Lawler shouting that it’s destiny.

Back in the arena (with the rest of the girls gone), Orton asks what everyone here did when they were 24 years old. Maybe they finally got a car or moved out of their parents’ basement. When he’s 24, he’s going to become the World Heavyweight Champion. This brings out Benoit to say that he wants to see the footage of Orton tapping out. Orton says that hasn’t happened so Benoit puts him in the Crossface right now for a tap. Benoit wants to see a replay right now but leaves before we see it. Dude if you’re not going to see it, don’t make the request. Another good segment here as they’re making me want to see the match.

Stacy Keibler/Victoria/Nidia vs. Jazz/Molly Holly/Gail Kim

Molly takes Victoria down to start as the hair is long, blonde and curly this week. Isn’t it time to retire that joke already? It’s been nearly five months now. Gail comes in and gets armdragged before it’s off to Stacy for what I have to imagine is a downgrade. The leg choke in the corner doesn’t get her very far and Molly low bridging her to the floor makes things even worse.

Jazz gets her turn with some forearms and knees but Stacy gets a boot up in the corner. A kick to Molly is enough for the hot tag to Nidia and somehow things get a little big better. Nidia hits a flapjack on Jazz but walks into a swinging neckbreaker from Molly. Everything breaks down and Nidia rolls Molly up for a quick pin.

Rating: D. I’m not sure who decided that it was a good idea to have Stacy work such a long stretch of the match but it was the best idea in the world. There’s some talent in the division but there’s so much bad stuff dragging the good down. It doesn’t help when we’ve seen almost every combination far too many times and there isn’t a lot of top talent to go around in the first place.

Post match here’s Trish Stratus to convince them all to come with her and do something.

We look back at HHH’s awesome beatdown of William Regal.

A very beaten up Regal and Eugene are at a hotel with Eugene saying he wants to go to the arena for his match tonight. Regal promises to go tonight but it’s not safe yet because it would be a big ambush and Regal isn’t capable of fighting right now. Instead, Eugene sits down and watches TV while Regal rests. With Regal in the other room, Eugene leaves for the arena alone. So this guy who could barely function on his own two months ago can now find an arena on his own?

Smackdown Rebound.

Matt Hardy comes up to see Lita, who has bad news: a DNA test says the baby is Kane’s. An angry Matt just stares at her and leaves.

JR is in the ring for the contract signing between Matt and Kane. Well that’s just awkward now. Lita follows behind Matt as Kane smiles rather evily. We get the recap of the rules for the match, which has to be near the top of the most ridiculous stipulations of all time. Lita and Kane sign with the latter smiling very hard. Matt doesn’t sign, walks around for a bit, and then signs. Kane says he’s more man than Matt and the obvious fight is on. A briefcase to the head knocks Kane out long enough for Matt and Lita to escape.

The Diva Search girls get 25 seconds to sell us ice cream. Joy is in a bikini and rubs it over herself, along with various toppings.

Amy turns it into a plug for Summerslam and sprays whipped cream in her mouth.

Carmella slowly puts stuff on her ice cream.

Tracie turns it into an infomercial.

Maria licks the ice cream and asks if anyone wants to share it with them. She’s rather enthusiastic here.

Christy wrecks the table and says she’s a good little girl who likes to share. This is quite annoying.

Michelle gives her number again (smart) and pours things on the ice cream.

At least it’s getting shorter. Not much smarter, but shorter.

Chris Jericho vs. Edge

Non-title. They stare each other down to start and fight over some waistlocks. Jericho gets a hammerlock until a whip into the corner and a knee to the back has Edge in some actual trouble. The double arm crank keeps Edge down as the announcers talk about King Kong and Godzilla. Edge is back up with some right hands to the head and blocks a splash with some knees. They’re still going rather slowly here and it seems they have a lot of time. Some shoulders to the back work on Jericho some more until he rakes the eyes.

Jericho tries his springboard dropkick but gets shoved outside in a big crash. The spear hits Jericho’s back, driving him off the apron and into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Edge holding a chinlock with a knee in the back as they’re still not exactly going at top speed. Edge tries going up so Jericho dropkicks him out of the air, cutting off the fans’ interest all over again. Jericho gets in the spinwheel kick, followed by the running crotch attack to the back.

They get back up and Edge goes with the simple offense of a big boot before a knee to the face cuts off Jericho’s charge. There’s a catapult into the corner but Jericho is smart enough to bail to the floor before the spear can hit. Edge hits a baseball slide instead and the ribs go straight into the barricade. Back in and Edge hits a release gordbuster off the top, setting up a missile dropkick for two. Edge misses the spear though and Edge grabs a rollup, with his feet on the ropes for the pin as Edge has been doing in recent weeks.

Rating: B+. Yeah of course this worked as they had a lot of time and a reason to fight. Both guys looked awesome here with Jericho hanging in there until he could win over the aggressive Edge. As good as Batista has been of late, there’s a case to be made for this being the Summerslam title match but at least we got to see it at some point. Really good stuff here, but is that really a surprise?

Post match Batista comes out to destroy both guys.

Eugene arrives and, after a break, finds out that HHH isn’t here. Instead, HHH is at the hotel destroying Regal. Well that and monologuing about payback like an evil mastermind. That’s one of the most logical things I’ve seen on this show in years.

Rhyno/Tajiri vs. Chris Cage/Brent Albright

Rhyno and Tajiri have to win in two minutes to get a title shot at Summerslam. Cage and Albright are both OVW guys. The bell rings and here’s La Resistance to watch. Tajiri kicks away at Albright to start and knocks an invading Cage down as well. Albright gets kicked in the face for his efforts to give Tajiri two and it’s off to Rhyno. Everything breaks down and a big spinebuster plants Cage. The Gore connects but La Resistance distracts the referee so time expires. No title shot in a bit of a surprise.

Divas, bikinis, next. Actually not next as Trish and the six women from earlier come out with a challenge for Summerslam: DODGEBALL. Somehow, that’s an improvement over all the other dumb stuff they’ve done so far. You can hear JR’s soul die as he tries to talk the idea up.

Evolution is happy with Regal’s beatdown.

HHH/Randy Orton vs. Chris Benoit/Eugene

Actually hang on as there’s no Eugene since he’s gone to be with Regal so we’ll try this instead.

HHH/Randy Orton vs. Chris Benoit

Benoit elbows them both in the face to start and a baseball slide puts HHH on the floor. A snap suplex takes Orton down and the rolling German suplexes do the same to HHH. Flair is right there to break up the Swan Dive though, allowing HHH to crotch Benoit on top. Orton comes in and drops some knees to the chest, followed by a dropkick. HHH gets to hammer away as well with Orton coming back in with a top rope stomp to the back. There’s a hard whip into the corner as the beatdown continues.

Regal’s blood is still all over HHH’s tape for a great touch. Orton grabs the chinlock, which JR describes as “very dangerous”. Benoit fights out of the corner but walks into a spinebuster to cut him right back off. A small package gives Benoit two and he sends HHH into Orton in the corner for a breather. There’s a superplex to Orton to knock him silly but Benoit can’t cover. HHH gets suplexed down and Benoit backdrops him out to the floor. The Crossface goes on and Flair comes in for the DQ.

Rating: C-. This was only so good as Benoit was literally on his own and wasn’t about to get a win here. At the same time you don’t want Benoit to take a clean loss, so of course you go with the DQ because that’s what Flair is there for anymore. The wrestling wasn’t the point here as it was more about the storyline, but at least what we got wasn’t bad.

Post match HHH gets in the beatdown on Benoit, including the Pedigree (shocking) but here’s Eugene to beat on HHH, who bails out. Eugene beats up Orton to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This is a hard one to grade as the good stuff was really good but the weaker parts stuck out horribly. The problem is they seemed to be getting ready for Summerslam but at the same time wanted to do a bunch of stuff that had nothing to do with the show, which isn’t the best idea for the go home show for one of the biggest cards of the year. What we got was good, but it could have been a lot better.

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

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

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

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