Summerslam 2018
Date: August 19, 2018
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips, Jonathan Coachman

It’s the second biggest show of the year (I think) and that means we’re in for a stacked card. The big matches include Roman Reigns challenging Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title, AJ Styles defending the WWE Championship against Samoa Joe and, in the match that I think should close the show, Daniel Bryan vs. the Miz. Tonight has some promise so let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Zelina Vega/Andrade Cien Almas vs. Rusev/Lana

Thankfully they waited a little longer before starting the first match this year, allowing some more fans to get into the arena. Last year was embarrassing looking but it’s a little better this time. The men start and it’s an early double tranquillo pose, earning Almas and Vega some Bulgarian roaring. We settle down to a RUSEV DAY chant and Rusev hitting a suplex. A missed charge sends Rusev shoulder first into the post and it’s an armbar to send us to a break.

Back with Almas getting two off a reverse tornado DDT. A second attempt is countered with a shove off the top and the hot tag brings in Lana. Vega has to come in as well and Lana kicks her down, setting up a Spinarooni of all things. A kick to the face cuts Vega off again but Lana stops to slap Almas, allowing Vega to roll her up for the pin at 6:55. They botched that one pretty badly as Vega was supposed to put her feet on the ropes but she’s so short that they couldn’t reach. Lana was barely struggling either and it didn’t look good.

Rating: D. I was really disappointed here as this could have been something very fun. What we got was a short match between the guys and then a bare bones match from the women. I don’t know if the stage got to Lana or what but this was the bad match that a lot of people have expected her to have. The finish was even worse though and made the match feel like a joke.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Cedric Alexander vs. Drew Gulak

Gulak is challenging and everyone else is banned from ringside. Alexander has held the title since Wrestlemania and Gulak has been on a roll, making everyone tap out. Gulak takes him to the mat and then into the corner to start but it’s way too early for the Gulock (dragon sleeper). Instead Alexander rolls out and dropkicks Gulak down so it’s time to go to the floor. Back in and Alexander’s springboard is blocked with a big boot, followed by a neckbreaker onto the knee.

We take a break and come back with Gulak staying on the neck with a clothesline for two. Gulak cranks on the neck but Alexander is right back up with a bottom rope springboard Downward Spiral. Some right hands keep Gulak in trouble and Cedric followed him to the floor with a big flip dive.

Back in and Alexander catches him on the ropes, setting up a short form Gulock to really mess with the neck. A spinning elbow to the jaw gets Cedric out of trouble for the time being but Gulak smacks him in the face. Gulak reverses the Neuralizer into an ankle lock but gets reversed into a cradle. Back up and Cedric hits the C4 but Gulak turns it over into a rollup for two more. Another rollup gives Gulak two but that’s reversed into a stacked up rollup for the pin on Gulak at 10:42.

Rating: C+. They had a hot finish here with the rollups and I was actually surprised by the finish. That being said, I’m not wild on having Alexander keep the title and would have bet on Gulak picking up the belt here. There’s not much of a reason to keep the title on Alexander as he’s far from the most interesting guy in the world. At least the match was pretty good though.

Kickoff Show: Raw Tag Team Titles: Revival vs. B Team

The B Team is defending and get taken down in the very early on with a dragon screw leg whip to Dallas. A Shatter Machine puts the illegal Axel down as well and it’s Dawson starting on in Dallas’ knee. Back from a break with Wilder staying on the knee and handing it back to Dawson, who gets kicked shoulder first into the post. Axel is still down from the Shatter Machine though and there’s no hot tag to be had.

Dallas’ knee is fine enough for the hanging swinging neckbreaker and now the hot tag brings Axel in. Axel cleans house and loads up the PerfectPlex but gets small packaged. The referee is with Dallas and Wilder though until Wilder snaps Dallas across the top. Dallas falls onto Axel and Wilder to turn the small package over for the pin on Dawson at 6:14.

Rating: D+. How can you not at least chuckle at these two schmucks? They’ve embraced the clueless putz characters and that’s all you can ask for. As ridiculous as they are, it’s not like the Raw tag division has anything else going on. Revival is a great team, but that doesn’t matter if they can’t get more than five minutes and a bunch of nothing opponents. This was the right call, which is better than I was expecting.

By the way, the total wrestling time on this year’s Kickoff Show: about 24 minutes, or just over half of last year’s. That’s a BIG improvement as there’s no need to have so much wrestling on a bonus feature before we get to the four hour pay per view.

The opening video features actor Terry Crews outside the arena, rhyming about what it means to be the best on the big stage. This was released earlier in the week.

There’s a big digital Empire State Building over the ring. That isn’t likely visible in the arena.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler is defending and has Drew McIntyre in his corner while Rollins has the freshly returned Dean Ambrose in his. The fans are very hot for Rollins here, especially BURN IT DOWN. Feeling out process to start with Seth being driven into the ropes but Dean is right there to cut Drew off. Back up and they run the ropes with Rollins nailing a hiptoss, sending Ziggler outside for a breather.

Seth follows him and it’s time for another big staredown. Rollins gets sent to the apron but stops to stare at Drew, allowing Ziggler to grab two off a neckbreaker. With Rollins seeming to favor his knee, Ziggler talks trash to Ambrose and then sends Rollins into the corner for a Flair Flip to the floor. Back in and the chinlock keeps Rollins in trouble for a good while. The comeback is cut off as Rollins grabs a vertical suplex over the top, only to fall out with Ziggler for a big crash.

Rollins hits a Sling Blade for two back inside and the middle rope Blockbuster gets two more. Ziggler rolls away from the threat of the frog splash so Rollins hits him with the suicide dive. The springboard clothesline sets up the ripcord knee for two and they’re both down for a minute. Ziggler’s sleeper is thrown off so they head to the apron with Ziggler saying this is it. Rollins gets shoved into the post and a jumping DDT drives him head first into the apron. That’s only good for a nine count as Rollins comes back in for the low superkick.

The frog splash hits knees though and Ziggler rolls him up for two more. Ziggler heads up top but Rollins is right there for a reverse superplex into a reverse inverted DDT (now that’s how you mix it up) and a near fall of his own. McIntyre sends Dean into the steps though, allowing Ziggler to hit the Zig Zag for the nearest fall yet. Dean is back up with Dirty Deeds to McIntyre and the bloody Rollins to avoid the superkick. The Stomp gives Rollins the title back at 22:01.

Rating: B. I know it won’t be, but I really could go for this feud ending already. It started a little over two months ago and feels like it’s been going on for a year now. At least Rollins has the title back and that’s all well and good, especially with the prospects of Ziggler and McIntyre being able to split up for good now. If nothing else, it’s nice to start the show with a good, long match for a change after last year took forever to get going.

The Bellas are here and are asked about their chances of appearing at Evolution. It turns into a list of plugs for their various projects before Nikki says they want to see Ronda Rousey win the Raw Women’s Title tonight. They’ll be ringside for the match tonight. And so it begins.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Bludgeon Brothers vs. New Day

New Day, Big E. and Xavier Woods here, are challenging after having won a tournament. Rowan runs Woods over to start and gets two each off a big boot and splash. It’s off to the fists around the head crush, followed by a pumphandle backbreaker to keep Woods down. Woods finally kicks Harper to the floor and makes the hot tag to Big E., who drops to the floor to throw some suplexes.

Back in and the Warrior Splash gets two on Harper, who comes right back with the Michinoku Driver. The double spinebuster doesn’t work though and Woods dives over the top onto Rowan. Everything breaks down and Big E. is sent into the steps, though the Brothers look a little banged up. They’re fine enough to hit the double spinebuster for two on Big E. with Woods making the save and getting the tag. Kofi gets taken down so Rowan eats the Big Ending on the floor.

A blind tag brings in Big E. but Harper stuns him with a superkick on the apron. Big E. tries the release Rock Bottom off the apron into the Codebreaker from Woods but the timing is off and it’s more like Harper just landing on Woods. Harper is fine enough to roll away from Woods’ top rope elbow so Woods hits it on the floor instead. The pain is immense but Woods throws him back in for the tag to Big E. UpUpDownDown is imminent but Rowan uses the mallet for the DQ at 9:36.

Rating: C+. They were getting somewhere before the ending to set up a rematch either on Smackdown or in the Cell. It’s a good idea to make the Brothers seem vulnerable against a top team like New Day, who couldn’t quite finish them off. At the moment the Smackdown tag team division is all of four teams so it’s a good idea to not change the titles just yet, along with keeping this match going for another month. Nice match, with an understandable ending.

Jon Stewart is here.

We recap Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens, which started back in June. Strowman threw him off a ladder at Money in the Bank and then won the briefcase, so Owens tried to be nice to him. Then Strowman destroyed his car, threw him in a portable toilet and off of a cage, meaning it’s time for a rematch with the briefcase on the line.

Money in the Bank Briefcase: Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Strowman is defending and can lose the briefcase by any means. The bell rings and Owens is knocked into the corner a few seconds later, followed by the run around the floor to shoulder him down. Strowman has so much fun that he does it again and a superkick just annoys him. A chokeslam onto the ramp knocks Owens silly and the running powerslam ends him at 1:56. Total and complete squash.

There was a Be A Star rally earlier in the week.

We recap the Smackdown Women’s Title match. Becky Lynch beat Carmella to earn a spot but then Charlotte returned and did the same thing, earning her own shot. Charlotte and Becky then got in a bit of a passive aggressive fight over Becky being jealous of Charlotte being added. Fair enough, but WWE loves itself some triple threats.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Carmella vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte

Carmella is defending and gets double teamed to start. In a smart move, she slaps Becky in the back of the head and blames Charlotte. The wedge doesn’t last long as Becky hiptosses Carmella to the floor and tries an early Disarm-Her on Charlotte. That goes nowhere as Charlotte escapes but gets pulled to the floor. Carmella sends Becky into the steps and reminds us that she is in fact the champion.

Back in and we hit the chinlock on Charlotte for a good while as Graves sings the champ’s praises. Becky has to be knocked off the apron, allowing Charlotte to start her comeback with the chops. Some suplexes make it even worse but Becky is back in with a double missile dropkick. Charlotte gets knocked outside and there’s the Bexploder to the champ. She crotches Becky on top though and gets two off a loose super hurricanrana. Charlotte comes back in with a spear to take them both down for two each and grabs a Walls of Jericho of all things on Carmella.

The Figure Four goes on instead but Becky makes the save with a guillotine legdrop. Carmella is back up and sends Becky outside for a suicide dive, only to have Charlotte miss the corkscrew moonsault (she slapped Carmella and completely missed Becky) to put them bot down. Back in and Carmella has to break up the Disarm-Her, followed by a superkick for two on Becky. Charlotte gets knocked to the floor and the Disarm-Her goes on, only to have Carmella grab the rope. The hold is slapped on again but Charlotte runs in with Natural Selection to Becky for the pin and the title at 14:35.

Rating: C+. Much better than I was expecting here and they better turn Becky heel after that ending. Thankfully they took the title off of Carmella, but at this point either she or Charlotte has been champion since November. They need some fresh blood in there, which hopefully is a ticked off Lynch.

Post match Carmella leaves so Becky and Charlotte can hug, only for Becky to turn on Charlotte and beat the fire out of her to a HUGE YES chant. Becky throws her over the table, leaving Charlotte to take a YOU DESERVE IT chant. That was the only way to go as A, Becky has a legitimate complaint about Charlotte being put into the match and stealing her title and B, there isn’t anyone else for Charlotte to fight.

We recap the Smackdown World Title match. AJ Styles has been champion since November, becoming the longest reigning World Champion in Smackdown history. Joe signed the contract to face him, partially because there was no one left aside from maybe Miz. After the match was set, Joe started talking about how AJ was sacrificing his family to be champion. AJ tried to keep things calm, but Joe read a letter supposedly from AJ’s wife Wendy, saying Joe was completely right. In other words, AJ isn’t happy.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Joe is challenging and even introduces AJ’s wife and daughter at ringside. It’s a feeling out process to start as AJ is a little more calm than (erg, especially after Joe’s comments) he should be here, even as the fans chant TNA. AJ grabs a headlock to slow Joe down but a heavy shoulder cuts him off. Some leg kicks have AJ in even more trouble but he’s right back with some forearms. The sliding forearm sends Joe outside and AJ tries to follow him, only to get kicked in the knee to take him off the apron.

A hard suicide dive sends AJ into the announcers’ table and one heck of a clothesline takes his head off back inside. We hit the chinlock, which makes you wonder why Joe doesn’t turn around just a hair and make it the Koquina Clutch instead. AJ gets up and knocks Joe’s block off with a right hand to the floor, followed by the slingshot forearm. Joe charges into an enziguri and the Phenomenal Blitz sets up another running forearm. The moonsault into a reverse DDT gets two on Joe and AJ puts him on top.

That doesn’t go well for the champ, who gets shoved down for a middle rope knee to a standing AJ for two more. The running big boot into the backsplash gets the same but AJ is right back with the fireman’s carry backbreaker. AJ is limping a bit and misses the Phenomenal Forearm, allowing Joe to snap him over with the powerslam for two more. A one armed Styles Clash gives AJ the same and they’re both down. Back up and they slug the heck out of it until a Pele sends Joe into the corner.

AJ makes the mistake of charging into the release Rock Bottom but is still able to put on the Calf Crusher. Joe’s solution: slam AJ’s head into the mat over and over. Joe slips over into the Koquina Clutch but AJ gets his foot on the ropes. It’s Muscle Buster time but AJ forearms him in the head. That’s fine with Joe, who hits one of the loudest enziguris I’ve ever heard to knock AJ outside. Joe sends him into the steps and grabs the mic. He tells Wendy that AJ isn’t coming home but he’ll be her new daddy. A suddenly bloody AJ tackles Joe off the table and through the barricade, followed by a chair to the back for the DQ at 22:46.

Rating: A-. You have to imagine that the Cell awaits these two and for once, the story would seem to fit that. AJ being able to do whatever he wants to Joe fits, but it would also seem to play much more into Joe’s hands. Anyway, of course these two had a great match because that’s all they know how to do. They were beating the fire out of each other and I want to see it again, which is the sign of a well done match. Really good stuff here, as expected.

Post match the beating continues until Wendy says that’s enough. AJ goes over to his family and his incredibly cute daughter says “daddy you’re bleeding”. AJ apologizes and hugs her before walking away with his family. Joe is TICKED as he leaves.

Here’s Elias to plug his album and talk about how awesome his songs are. He even has a new song, which he’s debuting right here in New York City. And then his guitar breaks. That’s too much for Elias, who throws the pieces around and storms off without saying anything.

Miz runs into the B Team and says if Bryan had followed his example, he might have lived off of Miz’s success like they had. For old times sake, they can fetch his limo for the celebration after. Actually they have their own celebrating to do because they’re the B Team and the B stands for Daniel Bryan. Dallas likes Miz and Mrs. (which he pronounces Mers) but they have their own show: Total Fellas. Dallas: “But with a B! Total Bellas!” Miz is stupefied as they leave.

We recap the Miz vs. Daniel Bryan. This one is over eight years in the making as Bryan came into WWE as Miz’s NXT rookie, despite being a top independent star. Bryan eventually defeated Miz a few times but they went on their own paths. Miz won a WWE Title while Bryan became the top star in the company, only to have injuries take him away for a few years. Now he’s back and healthy though, meaning it’s time for these two to FINALLY have the big match on the grand stage.

They’ve done a great job of setting up the culture clash here as Bryan is all about the love of wrestling and Miz is about becoming a star. Those worlds don’t jive and it’s made their feud that much better. The crowd reaction should be interesting, though Bryan is going to be the biggest face that ever faced around here.

The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan

Maryse is in the front row with a baby carriage. Miz hides in the corner for a bit before scoring with some YES Kicks. The running dropkick connects but Bryan grabs him by the throat and hammers away. The real YES Kicks rock Miz and a big one to the chest puts him down. Miz gets in a knee to the ribs and the surfboard goes on. Of course Bryan knows how to get out of that and starts kicking at Miz’s legs.

The REAL surfboard goes on and Bryan even bends back to get two off a bridge. Back up and Miz catches him with a hard clothesline, followed by a cravate with bonus trash talk. Miz starts firing off some knees to the head but Bryan is right back with right hands of his own. The moonsault over Miz sets up the running clothesline and the running corner dropkicks connect. A backdrop sends Miz to the floor and Bryan follows with two boots through the ropes and a top rope clothesline.

Back in and Miz gets caught in the Tree of Woe, which of course means more YES Kicks. One heck of a top rope belly to back suplex puts Miz down for two more but he’s right back with the short DDT. With Miz’s chest blood red, he fires off some NO Kicks of his own, which bring Bryan back to his feet. Bryan dragon screw whips Miz’s leg and hits the big kick to the head but can’t get the YES Lock. Instead a catapult into the post sets up the Skull Crushing Finale for two but Miz charges into another kick for another two.

They head to the apron with Bryan firing off kicks until the last one hits the post. That means a Figure Four back inside and Bryan is in big trouble. As usual, the solution is to punch Miz in the face and then turn the hold over. Miz lets it go and tries the Finale but Bryan kicks him in the back (the leg shouldn’t be able to do that) and goes with the heavy elbows to the head.

The YES Lock goes on and Bryan punches Miz in the back of the head as the aggression continues to come out. Miz makes the rope though and bails to the floor, only to get kneed in the head. That knocks Miz right in front of Maryse, who hands him something. Whatever it is knocks Bryan silly when he tries a suicide dive, giving Miz the pin at 23:30.

Rating: B+. I liked this one as much as I expected to and the ending does set up a rematch. You have to imagine that Bryan is sticking around given that finish as there’s a wide open door for the feud to continue. It was a nice, long match and got the attention that it deserved, but it didn’t feel like the final match throughout. The ending takes care of that though and everything is fine.

Replays confirm the object, with Graves going into full Bobby Heenan mode to talk his way around the cheating.

Video on Undertaker vs. HHH for Super Show-Down in their final match. To be fair they haven’t been ridiculous with the plugging tonight.

Baron Corbin vs. Finn Balor

THE DEMON IS BACK! FOR THIS MATCH??? This is the rubber match after Corbin started being mean to Balor for being small. It’s been a horrible story but the Demon makes up for some of it. Cole gets his Demon history wrong, saying it last appeared two years ago. It was last year Cole. You called the match.

The fans are VERY pleased and Corbin is told he has to face him. The bell rings and it’s the shotgun dropkick into the Sling Blade to put Baron on the floor in the smoke. Balor adds a flip dive and it’s another Sling Blade on the floor. Back in and Balor hits a top rope double stomp to the back, followed by the Coup de Grace for the pin at 1:29. NOW THAT’S MORE LIKE IT!

Bryan is ticked off when Brie finally remembers that they’re married and comes in to see him in his moment of need. He calls his comeback a bust but she gives him a pep talk which seems to work well enough.

US Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jeff Hardy

Nakamura is defending after taking the title from Hardy last month. Feeling out process to start and of course Nakamura is over like free beer in a frat house in New York. Nakamura dodges a few early shots and tells him to COME ON. Jeff does exactly the same and sends Nakamura into four buckles in a row. That earns him a quick takedown and Nakamura slaps on a chinlock.

Nakamura hammers on him a bit more until Hardy, to the tune of a BROTHER NERO chant, comes back up with a Sling Blade. An atomic drop sets up the legdrop between the legs and a basement dropkick gets two. Jeff slips out of the reverse exploder but the slingshot dropkick is countered into Nakamura sitting him on the top. The running knee misses though and Jeff gets two off a Whisper in the Wind.

Nakamura is fine enough to catch him with another kick to the head, followed by the sliding knee for two. Kinshasa is countered into a failed Twist of Fate attempt but Hardy is ready for the low blow. Now the Twist of Fate sets up the Swanton Bomb for a delayed two as Nakamura grabs the bottom rope. A second Twist of Fate sends Nakamura bailing to the apron, so Jeff climbs the post and Swantons the apron because he’s that freaking crazy. Back in and the Kinshasa finishes whatever is left of Hardy at 10:55.

Rating: C. I have no idea how Hardy is still walking and I don’t think he does either most of the time. The match was fine enough and Hardy gave it a run but Nakamura needed this way more than Hardy did. If nothing else Hardy already has Randy Orton sitting around for their big pay per view match so the loss was the only option here. Not a bad match, but nothing great, especially on a long shot.

Post match Orton comes out, smacks himself in the head, and leaves without even getting in the ring. Ok then.

We recap Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss. Rousey was about to win the Raw Women’s Title last month but Bliss interfered for a DQ and cashed in her briefcase to win the title. Bliss then made Rousey snap and got her suspended for a month. Rousey’s reward: a match for the title tonight.

Raw Women’s Title: Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

Rousey is challenging and before the match, here’s Natalya in the same jacket her dad wore at Summerslam 1990. Bliss comes out and sneers at the Bella Twins, who are sitting in the front row. Rousey now has eye paint and her name on her shorts as she does the power walk to the ring. Bliss hides in the corner to start (smart) and a single right hand puts her on the floor. More stalling ensues so Rousey even turns her back and sits down so Bliss can come in with no problem.

Rousey closes her eyes and Bliss grabs a chinlock, meaning it’s time for the scary Ronda face. The hold is broken (Bliss: “No no no no no!” Rousey: “YES!”) and there’s the swinging Samoan drop. A chase lets Bliss get in a forearm and Rousey is just made angrier. Bliss gets flipped on her face and Rousey unloads in the corner, followed by some judo throws. Another swinging Samoan drop (Rousey: “ARE YOU READY???”) connects and it’s armbar time. The arm is twisted in a variety of angles (including Bliss popping it in and out of joint) and one hard crank makes Bliss tap at 4:39.

Rating: C+. What do you want me to say? That was exactly what it should have been as Rousey should be able to destroy Bliss in short order. I’m not sure who is supposed to take the title off of Rousey, but if she can hold it until Wrestlemania (which she likely will), there’s a heck of a dream match to be had with Charlotte. Total squash here and, again, Rousey looked like she’s been doing this for years.

Post match Natalya comes in for the celebration and the Bellas join them because reasons. Rousey goes into the crowd and kisses her husband for the nice moment.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns (again). As is usually the case, Reigns is whining about how Lesnar is lazy and doesn’t like the fans so he should get another title shot. Also as usual, the fans don’t seem to buy it and Reigns isn’t likely to be cheered here. There are a few options for the finish and that makes the ending a little more interesting than usual.

Raw World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns

Brock is defending and gets no reaction (That HAD to be muted. No New York crowd has ever been that quiet). Hang on though as here’s Strowman with the briefcase. He’s not cashing in behind anyone’s back because he’ll be waiting on the winner. The bell rings and Reigns hits two Superman Punches and a pair of spears but the third is countered into a guillotine choke. That’s broken up with a spinebuster but Lesnar puts it right back on.

Another spinebuster breaks the hold again and they’re both down. Lesnar takes his gloves off and it’s Suplex City time. Three straight German suplexes draw a YOU BOTH SUCK chant and Reigns can barely stand. Reigns is back up with a missed charge that hits Strowman so Lesnar goes outside and gives Braun an F5 on the floor. With Reigns back in, Lesnar beats on Strowman with the briefcase, which he then throws from ringside all the way to the entrance, breaking part of the LED board. Strowman gets chaired down but Lesnar walks into a spear to make Reigns champion at 6:16.

Rating: C+. I know they repeat moves and I know the ending isn’t the most popular move in the world, but these two know how to make the matches feel big. I was wanting to see what happened and that’s more than you can say about a lot of matches. Reigns finally getting rid of Lesnar is a good thing, but I really wish they would just get rid of the briefcase already so it doesn’t have to be around.

Reigns poses to end the show with no cash-in.

Overall Rating: A-. That was a heck of a show and above all else it was about the pacing. They did a GREAT job of making this show stay at a steady pace with some hot matches and then a quick match to let the fans get back into it. That took place throughout the night and did wonders for the show, which never felt like it dragged. Compare this to Wrestlemania, which felt like it dragged every few minutes.

On top of that, the wrestling was solid all night long with good to very good wrestling, logical booking decisions and stuff being set up for the future. This was a very entertaining night and notice the crowd not taking the show over at all. That’s a nice change of pace and made the evening that much more enjoyable. Really good stuff here and the best WWE pay per view in a long time.

Results

Seth Rollins b. Dolph Ziggler – The Stomp

New Day b. Bludgeon Brothers via DQ when Rowan used the mallet

Braun Strowman b. Kevin Owens – Running powerslam

Charlotte b. Becky Lynch and Carmella – Natural Selection to Lynch

Samoa Joe b. AJ Styles via DQ when Styles used a chair

The Miz b. Daniel Bryan – Left hand with a foreign object

Finn Balor b. Baron Corbin – Coup de Grace

Shinsuke Nakamura b. Jeff Hardy – Kinshasa

Ronda Rousey b. Alexa Bliss – Armbar

Roman Reigns b. Brock Lesnar – Spear

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Isn’t this supposed to be a party? Summerslam has really taken a fall in the last few years and a lot of that can be attributed to how much is on the show. Last year’s event had the big problem of being too packed of a show and this year’s show has the same amount of matches. I’m not sure why WWE thinks that’s the way to make the matches feel big and important but it doesn’t seem to be stopping them anytime soon. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Rusev/Lana vs. Andrade Cien Almas/Zelina Vega

In a way I’m glad this is on the Kickoff Show because it’s going to get some more time. I’ve liked this story way more than I ever would have expected and that’s a great sign for everyone involved. Rusev has turned into a full on face while Lana continues to be some Russian/American hybrid. On the other hand though you have the outstanding package of Vega and Almas, who could go straight up to the top of the card in a hurry.

Therefore, I’m taking Almas and Vega here with Almas pinning Rusev. I know there’s more value in Rusev than in Lana, but this is a place where Lana and/or Aiden English could cost Rusev the match to protect him. Almas seems ready to move up towards the main event picture and if that’s the case, pinning Rusev is a good start. They’ve got something with that pairing and there’s not much of a reason to wait on it.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Cedric Alexander(c) vs. Drew Gulak

This one has been building for a long time now and there should be one ending to the whole thing. Alexander won the title on the Wrestlemania XXXIV Kickoff Show and has beaten everyone who has come against him since. He hasn’t actually lost a match this year and that makes him a very interesting target for someone as dangerous as Gulak.

That’s why I’m taking Gulak to win here. At the end of the day, Alexander is someone who just isn’t interesting enough to carry the division. His matches are good and he’s someone who has been good for the title, but he can’t carry it much further. Gulak has been awesome in the role as the submission master and he even has goons with Brian Kendrick and Jack Gallagher. There’s no reason to not change the title here and I think WWE understands that.

Kickoff Show: Raw Tag Team Titles: B Team(c) vs. Revival

Now we have our first questionable one as the B Team isn’t someone you can have lose anytime soon as their first loss takes away the magic. Their whole run is built around the improbably winning streak and to take that away is basically a death knell for the team. When your entire tag division might be four teams deep, that’s really not a good idea at all. So what do you do?

I think you keep the B Team rolling for now. What’s the point in taking away the steam that is still there before you have to? The B Team is popular at the moment and there’s no reason to take away what they have going for them at the moment. As much as I hate to say it, the Revival will just have to wait. At the end of the day, the depth problems are still around and the B Team is the best thing in the division at the moment, meaning there’s no reason to cut them down.

Money In The Bank Briefcase: Braun Strowman(c) vs. Kevin Owens

It’s very rare to see this thing defended and I couldn’t be happier about the idea. I’m not sure how long it’s going to be before someone cashes the briefcase in (PLEASE be sooner rather than later) but if it takes a long time, it’s a good idea to have them defend it here and there, just for the sake of keeping them a little warm rather than losing over and over again and then “oh I’m champion now”.

As for the first defense of the briefcase in a long time, I think I’ll go with Strowman holding onto it. They’ve done a good job of setting the match up with the idea of Strowman being able to lose the briefcase via countout or DQ, but it seems like a problem being set up so Strowman can overcome it. There’s nothing wrong with that but above all else, Strowman losing here would be cutting his legs out. Just let Strowman win and keep going, if nothing else for the sake of his future.

Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin

Let’s get this one out of the way. This has been one of the least interesting/entertaining feuds I can remember in a good while on WWE TV and I’m really hoping that it’s done after Sunday. Corbin being a bully who keeps saying he’s bigger and better than Balor was stupid at first and now it just keeps going, which is a lot worse than what it even was to start with. They’ve traded wins, including Corbin winning a pretty meaningless 18+ minute match on Monday Night Raw. This is the rubber match, though I’m hoping more for the rubber hardening and neither of them being able to move.

I’ll take Balor to win because WWE is going to need something to get the fans to cheer. I know they like the idea of pushing Corbin, but there aren’t a lot of people he can want to fight. Corbin will still have his job as Constable so there isn’t much of a need to give him a win here, especially not when Balor needs it a lot more. That’s pretty sad given where Balor should be at the moment, but it’s true.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Bludgeon Brothers(c) vs. New Day

This is a situation where I’m not sure what else is supposed to happen. You can have the Brothers hold the titles for a long time, but at some point someone has to beat them. The problem though is who else is supposed to? The SmackDown tag division is pretty much these two, the Bar and the Usos, unless you count Sanity, who aren’t a traditional tag team. Therefore, who else is supposed to take the titles from the Brothers?

I’ll go with the Brothers retaining here, though outside of a team being thrown together in the next few months, I’m really not sure who else is going to take the titles. New day are in the running, but it’s not like they need them to be a popular team. The Brothers can keep them here and lose them later on, though it’s not like they’re flush with competition at the moment.

Raw Women’s Title: Alexa Bliss(c) vs. Ronda Rousey

Here we have a match that should be a layup on paper but that’s never stopped WWE before. This time around Rousey is getting another title shot after Bliss interrupted her title shot against Nia Jax and took the title for herself. Bliss has been champion for most of the last year plus and there isn’t much left for her to do with the title. I think you know what this means.

Of course Rousey should get the title here and in reality, the match should be about ten seconds. I can live with Alicia Fox offering a distraction, but Bliss should get taken out in a hurry here. That’s what Rousey has been missing and it fits her matches perfectly, at least in some situations. Bliss is a rather small woman and there’s little reason to believe that Rousey will have trouble with her. Then again, see the Jax vs. Bliss matches. Either way, Rousey wins and wins handily.

US Title: Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs. Jeff Hardy

I could go either way on this one. First of all, it’s pretty clear that Hardy is moving on from this to continue his feud with Randy Orton. The question though is whether or not that feud is over the US Title, which Hardy would have to win here. Really, I’m not sure why that needs to be the case, as Nakamura failed so badly during his Smackdown World Title chase that he needs the US Title to rehabilitate him.

I’ll go with Orton costing Hardy the title and Nakamura moving on to face someone else (a face Rusev could be interesting). It opens up two doors instead of one and keeps Nakamura strong, which is what you want to do. Nakamura pinning Hardy, even with some assistance from Orton, would give him a nice boost and hopefully WWE realizes this instead of having Hardy win another title he doesn’t need.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Carmella(c) vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte

I was getting into the idea of Lynch vs. Carmella one on one for the title but since WWE is WWE, they went with the tried and true “champion loses to multiple challengers to set up a three way” instead of having an actual fresh story. Why I would want to see that isn’t clear, but then again a lot of things about WWE’s creative decisions elude me these days. So we have Charlotte and Lynch kind of sort of arguing over who should be champion while Carmella is all loud voices and trash talking.

Since it’s WWE, I’ll go with Carmella retaining. That would be the worst option they could pick as well as the easiest, making it the most likely. I can’t imagine them actually picking Lynch or Charlotte over the other, so we’ll go with something that gives Carmella another talking point. That’s what WWE creative tends to do best these days: come up with things to talk about rather than actual things. Then in two weeks Carmella can brag about having the longest reign of a title that has been around about two years. Lucky us.

Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler(c) vs. Seth Rollins

I’m not sure what to think on this one as you’ll likely see a good performance from both guys, but man alive I’m sick of seeing these two fight. This will be their fourth singles match in about two months, not counting the tag/handicap matches. At least Dean Ambrose is there to mix things up a little bit this time around, which should at least keep the crowd more under control.

I’ll take Rollins to get the title back, likely setting up a tag match next month where Ambrose turns on him to get the title for himself down the line. Either way the match should be good, but I’m still wanting to see more of Drew McIntyre than anyone else. It’s so great that they’ve managed to turn him into a better than average lackey instead of the star he should be, but that Ziggler man, he’s got to be going places this time around.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles(c) vs. Samoa Joe

Styles is now the longest reigning Smackdown World Champion of all time, which you might expect to hear…oh half a dozen times tomorrow or so. I’m actually interested in this one, which I’d assume has something to do with it having a personal touch instead of being about the title like it almost always is otherwise. I love seeing how far a title reign can go and Styles has an outside chance at making it into the rare air of a year long reign, this this is big hurdle to get over.

And I don’t think he does. Samoa Joe is someone who should have been World Champion already (that tends to happen to him a lot in bigger promotions) and with Styles having held the title for such a long time already, it’s probably time to get someone fresh in there. The good thing is this should be a heck of a fight, which hopefully ends in a pin/submission one way or another. That being said, Styles snapping and losing his cool for a DQ wouldn’t shock me, especially with Hell in a Cell next month.

The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan

If it was up to me, this would be the show’s main event. It’s been built up for over eight years and it’s received the best promo time of the show’s build. I understand why it won’t, but it’s the show’s big match. The question though is whether or not it’s the final match in the feud. I can’t imagine that’s the case, but if Bryan is leaving the promotion next month (unlikely but possible), things are up in the air.

I’ve said it since it was clear that this feud was announced: Miz should win. What better way to show that Bryan has lost a step or needs to get back up the card than to have Miz beat him with a fast cradle for a clean pin? While you risk the fans rioting over the result (though to be fair, having Roman Reigns in the main event is risking it enough), it’s the right way to go and what I actually see going down.

Raw World Title: Brock Lesnar(c) vs. Roman Reigns

We’ll wrap it up here, in a place we’ve been in all too often. For the life of me, I can’t imagine WWE having Reigns lose to the same person three times in a year. This has dragged on for the better part of ever and the fans are so sick of hearing about it that something has to give. Above all else, it’s a case of “if not now, then when”, and that’s not something you want taking place.

Reigns wins here, and…..you know what? Let’s go full speed: Strowman cashes in and Reigns pins him too. I expect Lesnar to be back in WWE some day down the line as he’s not exactly getting old. Just have Reigns win the freaking title already though, just for the sake of giving us something fresh. WWE might go with the dumb route of having Lesnar go over again and leave Reigns in an even worse place all over again, but let’s go with Reigns winning, for a change that is.

Overall Thoughts

What does it say when WWE has turned one of the biggest, most important shows of the year into something that feels like a chore? As is usually the case, there is too much going on here and the card is feeling overloaded. There are some matches that stick out to me and the card doesn’t look terrible, but I’m fully expecting it to be so bogged down that nothing can really get the time it needs, aside from Reigns vs. Lesnar of course.

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Summerslam 2016
Date: August 21, 2016
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Attendance: 15,974
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Mauro Ranallo, David Otunga, John Bradshaw Layfield

A year has passed since I saw this show and I can barely remember much about it. That’s very telling when you look at how stacked this show really is. There are multiple top level matches here and it really wasn’t clear what was going to close the show until the night of the event. Hopefully that means that this SIX HOUR show holds up. Let’s get to it.

So here’s a quick plug. I’m going through the pre-show and there’s a three expert panel of Booker T., Jerry Lawler and Lita. Earlier this year, I met all three of them at WrestleCon. If you’re ever at a Wrestlemania weekend, treat yourself to an amazing time and GO TO WRESTLECON. I met over 120 wrestlers in about four hours. Where else are you going to get to do something like that? Anyway, on with the show.

Pre-Show: American Alpha/Hype Bros/Usos vs. Breezango/Ascension/Vaudevillains

Who would have thought that Breezango would be the most entertaining out of all these teams? This is pretty much the still titleless Smackdown tag division at this point as they had to bring in the Headbangers and throw together Heath Slater and Rhyno to be able to have a tournament. This is also a rematch from Smackdown, which shows how little effort they were putting into the tag division at this point.

Gable and Breeze start things and the fans are WAY into Gable. Chad twists around as only he can to escape a wristlock and it’s off to Jey, who is quickly driven into the corner. English comes in and says that he’s what a man is. That earns him a right hand to the jaw and it’s off to Mojo to work on a wristlock. Ryder comes in to quite the reaction as Mauro says the Hype Bros have more chemistry than the Periodic Table.

Everything breaks down (What took them so long?) and Ascension clears the ring, only to have American Alpha come off the top (the same corner) with double clotheslines (that’s pure Steiner Brothers). English posts Ryder though and we take a break. Back with Gotch putting Ryder in a chinlock, followed by Viktor doing the same. The other heels take turns stomping on Ryder until Breeze grabs his own chinlock. Fandango adds a slingshot legdrop as this is going WAY longer than it needs to.

JBL thinks cold beer uniting the APA is more effective than furry selfie sticks uniting Breezango but maybe he’s wrong. Ascension knocks the good guys off the apron but Viktor misses a charge in the corner, allowing Ryder to get in a neckbreaker on Konnor. The hot tag (with a limited reaction) brings in Jimmy to clean house.

Jordan gets the real hot tag and does his fired up sequence (which he really is awesome at) with a belly to belly getting two on Breeze. We hit the parade of secondary finishers as the referee is imploring them to tag. Mojo powerbombs Breeze and Viktor out of the corner and the Usos add stereo superkicks to set up stereo dives. Back in and Grand Amplitude plants Gotch, only to have Jey tag himself in for a Superfly Splash and the pin at 14:31. Gable is really not cool with that. Eh just wait until your team is split up for a pretty lame story where Jordan is Kurt Angle’s son.

Rating: B-. If you cut out a few minutes from this, it’s a heck of an opener. There are too many people in the match of course but they kept it moving fast enough (for the most part) to really get something fun out of it. Jordan’s house cleaning spot is a heck of a way to fire the crowd up and it made the match more fun than it should have been. Tweak this a bit (eight/ten man tag or shorten the match a bit) and it’s even better.

Pre-Show: Dudley Boyz vs. Sami Zayn/Neville

Sami works on D-Von’s arm to start and it’s off to Neville for more of the same. Both of them get in more shots as we hear about the rivalry over the NXT Title. I do appreciate the history, especially when Graves should know about that match very well. Bubba is sent outside but D-Von breaks up a springboard dive, allowing Bubba to nail Neville from behind to take over. The fans want tables but a back elbow to Neville’s jaw cuts them off in a hurry.

Back from a break with Bubba hitting his neckbreaker out of the corner. Things slow down even more as Bubba is talking even more than he usually does in a match. Bubba: “COME ON ENGLISH BOY! O-LAY! O-LAY!” The middle rope backsplash misses though and the hot tag brings in Sami. D-Von takes the Blue Thunder Bomb for two but the reverse 3D gets the same. Neville escapes the regular version though and we get some heel miscommunication. The Helluva Kick sets up the Red Arrow to put Bubba away at 7:55.

Rating: C-. That would be it for the Dudleys in WWE as they would have one more segment tomorrow night where Anderson and Gallows sent them packing. It’s also pretty much it for Sami and Neville as a team, which is quite odd as you would think they would be a fine choice for a team. The match was nothing you wouldn’t expect on Raw.

Pre-Show: Cesaro vs. Sheamus

You know, because two matches just weren’t enough for the pre-show. This is the first match of the Best of Seven Series, which really wasn’t too well received. After Cole says Cesaro is facing Cesaro and both Cole and Saxton say this is about establishing physical dominance, we’re ready to go. Sheamus misses a very early Brogue Kick but the spinning springboard uppercut is blocked as well.

Cesaro charges into an uppercut but comes back with a dropkick for one. The ten forearms to the chest are broken up so Sheamus clotheslines him onto the apron instead. It’s off to an armbar on Cesaro’s chronically taped up shoulder but Cesaro lifts him up into that kind of reverse Angle Slam of his. They’re certainly hitting each other hard here, which is pretty much the draw of the whole feud.

Sheamus hits a tilt-a-whirl slam and it’s off to a break. Back with Cesaro fighting out of a chinlock because that rule even applies on pre-shows that will never end. The Irish Curse gives Sheamus two as Cole runs down the pay per view card, which only makes me think that there are FAR too many titles in WWE. They fight over a suplex and fall out to the floor in a heap. Back in and Cesaro starts firing off the running uppercuts in the corner, capped off by a dropkick to knock him off the ropes.

The apron superplex (which wasn’t from the apron) gets two but Sheamus counters the Neutralizer into White Noise for two. There’s the super Regal Roll for two more and frustration is really setting in. Another Brogue Kick attempt is countered by one heck of a clothesline though and Cesaro adds a high crossbody for two of his own. Cesaro tries the Sharpshooter but Sheamus gets to the ropes. Back up and a poke to the eye sets up the Brogue Kick to give Sheamus the pin at 14:11.

Rating: B. They beat the heck out of each other and it was a fun match but it also brings up the problem: I’m not going to want to watch them fight six more times. No matter how good things are, having them happen so many times in a row over several weeks is going to get tiresome. It happens in all these series and it’s happening here too.

And now, after more wrestling than you get on an average Smackdown, here’s the actual pay per view.

The opening video looks at New York City, with the narrator telling you how AMAZING the city is. I’m not sure if New York City or Texas is worse about bragging about their home’s greatness. As usual, this switches over to a series of quick looks at the biggest matches on the card.

Enzo Amore/Big Cass vs. Chris Jericho/Kevin Owens

Well duh. That’s about as easy of a choice for an opener as you could ever find for this show. As you might expect, the crowd eats up the opening promo with a spoon and of course we hear a ton of New York City music references. Included are Frank Sinatra, Biggie Smalls and Jay-Z, plus more that probably go over my head. Cass adds in a few songs of his own as this is the only way this show could have opened. Since Graves is the best heel commentator in wrestling today though, he points out that Enzo is from New Jersey.

Jericho and Owens jump Enzo at the bell and the STUPID IDIOT chants start rolling. Enzo comes back with a crossbody and a running right hand to the jaw for two. It’s off to Cass, who drags Owens inside for a beal. That’s some scary power. Enzo gets launched into the corner to crush Jericho but the Canadians bail to the floor. That’s fine with Cass who tosses Enzo over the top onto them in a huge crash. I’ve always loved that spot as it just looks cool.

Back in and Enzo ax handles Owens but turns into a middle rope dropkick from Jericho. The Canadian violence begins with Owens kneeing Enzo from the apron and doing his dance on the apron in a rather funny visual. Owens’ comedic skills aren’t given enough credit more often than not. It’s back to Jericho for the Arrogant Cover and a chinlock with Owens telling Jericho to do it like he taught him.

Owens comes in and adds a gutbuster for two, followed by the running start for a chinlock. It takes real talent to turn a chinlock into an art form but Owens has somehow pulled it off. Enzo finally rolls away but Jericho is there to break up the diving tag attempt. Owens drops the frog splash for two and his stunned looked on the kickout is the usual awesome visual. Enzo gets pulled off the corner to make things even worse but, after blowing a kiss to Jericho, misses the Cannonball.

That means the hot tag to Cass and everything breaks down. Jericho dives into a big boot but Owens breaks up the Bada Boom Shaka Lacka. Cass gets posted on the floor and now the Cannonball against the barricade connects. Back in and Enzo scores with his top rope DDT on Jericho with Owens making the save. A pop up Codebreaker (didn’t look great as Jericho was too far away) ends Enzo at 12:09.

Rating: C+. Odd choice for an ending aside (not surprising of course but odd), this was a good way to get the crowd going. I could have gone for another hope spot from Enzo and more of Cass cleaning house but that pop up Codebreaker could have been a heck of a finisher if done right. Nice opener, though would it have killed them to put Enzo and Cass over in Brooklyn?

Smackdown bosses Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon run into Raw General Manager Mick Foley to brag about how awesome their shows are. Former Daily Show host Jon Stewart and his son come in to ask what Foley is thinking to work with Stephanie. He rants about abuse of power but realizes she’s right behind him. Stephanie yells at him about how great it is to abuse power but thankfully New Day comes up. As the Smackdown bosses and Foley much on cereal, New Day asks Jon if he’d like to do something. He gets out as fast as he can and Stephanie isn’t amused.

We recap Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks. Sasha won the Women’s Title on the first exclusive show after the Brand Split and tonight is the rematch. The other big idea here is Charlotte never loses singles matches on pay per view and Banks has to recreate the magic one more time.

Raw Women’s Title: Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte

Banks is defending and we get the Big Match Intros. Some early WOOing sets up a slightly less early Bank Statement but Charlotte bails to the floor. Back in and Banks climbs the corner for a wristdrag before sending Charlotte face first into the middle buckle. Banks gets caught on top though and Charlotte basically drops her onto the ropes for a backbreaker which almost had to hurt horribly. The fact that Banks had a bad back coming in and Charlotte still did some rather sloppy moves like that got her in some hot water.

We hit a Gory Stretch on the champ for a bit but she comes back with a pair of running clotheslines. That just earns her another backbreaker and Charlotte stomps away at the back. The Figure Eight is broken up but Sasha misses a charge into the corner and gets caught in the Tree of Woe. Charlotte picks her up for a super Razor’s Edge but since that would, you know, kill Sasha, she reverses into a hurricanrana to put them both down.

Back up and a WOO earns Charlotte a string of slaps before Sasha avoids a charge in the corner and hits the double knees to the back for two. Charlotte kicks her in the leg to break up a charge but gets knocked outside again, setting up the double knees from the apron. Back in and the Backstabber doesn’t work but Natural Selection is countered into the Bank Statement (thankfully too as the Natural Selection clearly didn’t send Sasha’s head anywhere near the mat).

Charlotte makes the rope for the break and takes out the knee again. Natural Selection gives Charlotte two so she yells about being better than Sasha. Another Bank Statement goes on but Charlotte reverses into a rollup for the pin and the title at 13:52. Saxton: “Just like that?”

Rating: B. This was just a straight match and that’s the key to the whole thing. The women are getting to show that they can have a good match without the smoke and mirrors, which never would have been the case otherwise. If nothing else it got the kind of time that a title match deserves to develop the story of Banks having a bad back (which would keep her on the shelf for about a month). Strong match here and another of many to come for these two.

Doctors Anderson and Gallows (oh man I had forgotten how stupid this was) run into AJ Styles for a Club reunion. Finn Balor comes up and doesn’t think much of it. Somehow, this has still never gone anywhere.

Intercontinental Title: Miz vs. Apollo Crews

Crews is defending after winning a triple threat match. Miz comes out wearing a glittery Phantom of the Opera mask while Maryse is basically in a one piece swimsuit. In a sign of the changing times, Mauro talks about Miz’s look instead of Maryse. Miz stomps away in the corner and gets two off a running kick to the chest. Crews gets the same off a rollup, only to walk into the short DDT as it’s almost all Miz to start. We’re already in the reverse chinlock before Miz sends him into the apron to cut off a comeback. Miz takes too long coming off the top though and dives into a dropkick to put both guys down.

A crossbody into a nipup has Miz in trouble as JBL rants about Otunga calling Crews a Jackrobat (jacked acrobat). The Toss Powerbomb is countered so Crews gets two off a tilt-a-whirl powerslam. An overhead belly to belly sets up a standing moonsault, which Otunga sums up perfectly: “A man with that kind of size and that kind of muscle should not be able to do that.” Miz teases taking a walk but Maryse cuts him off, allowing Miz to post Crews. The Skull Crushing Finale retains the title at 5:36.

Rating: D+. Standard Smackdown match and something that could have been cut, or at least put in the Kickoff Show in the place of the Dudleys match. Crews felt like an easy obstacle to overcome because there was nowhere near enough build to set the match up. Put some more effort into the title already people, as it’s just not working.

We recap John Cena vs. AJ Styles. They set up the first match when Styles and Cena were in the ring together, only to have Anderson and Gallows interfere to turn Styles heel. Styles went on a great rant about how Cena was a fraud who couldn’t hang in the ring with someone like him. Cena went into a great speech about how he’s here out of love because it never gets old. AJ beat him at Money in the Bank with assistance from Anderson and Gallows, setting up a rematch between the two here.

AJ Styles vs. John Cena

This just feels big. AJ grabs a waistlock to start but is easily knocked away. The announcers go out of the way to put over how AJ has been on big shows before but nothing this big. Oh I don’t know. I remember him being at that Wrestlemania thing earlier in the year. The dueling chants begin and the AJ STYLES side is pretty clearly stronger.

Cena’s headlock is countered and AJ scores with the dropkick but the bragging earns AJ a right to the jaw. A hard whip into the corner sends AJ down for a bit with Cena doing some rare trash talking. They head to the floor and the fans start belting out JOHN CENA SUCKS, only to have AJ turn it into some gasping with a suplex onto the apron. Cena is right back with a dropkick for two and it’s time for some more right hands to the head.

AJ comes back with a forearm to the face, earning himself Cena’s finishing sequence. It’s way too early for the AA though as AJ hits a Pele, followed by the Styles Clash for a close two. The fans were actually more into the near fall than I was expecting as you would think they’d know better this early. The AA gives Cena two of his own and both guys are down again.

Styles slips out of the super AA and grabs the torture rack for the spinout powerbomb. They’re trading bombs at this point and it’s the only way they should be going here. Something like a Big Ending gives Cena two but he can’t get the STF. Instead it’s the AA neckbreaker for two on Cena (not the same as the AA JBL) but the springboard 450 only hits mat.

A faceplant puts Cena down again though and AJ can’t follow up. He manages the springboard forearm but Cena reverses into the worst STF I’ve ever seen. Thankfully AJ slips out and grabs a Crossface, which Cena powers out of as well. That’s reversed into the Calf Crusher which AJ is smart enough to twist away from the ropes. Cena reverses that into another horrible STF (AJ’s face is on the mat) so AJ is quickly up with the enziguri. A tornado DDT plants AJ and there’s the top rope Fameasser for two.

Cena heads up again and gets taken down with a super hurricanrana (Mauro: “MAMA MIA!”), followed by the Phenomenal Forearm for a VERY near fall (drawing Mauro to his feet). It’s Cena’s turn now as he takes AJ up for the super AA and….it’s two. NOW the fans know it’s on as I don’t think anyone has ever kicked out of that before. Cena is stunned and the AA is countered into another Clash. The Phenomenal Forearm puts Cena away clean at 23:10.

Rating: A. I know it’s not going to sound good but a lot of this goes to Cena. At the end of the day, the crowd completely lost it when AJ kicked out of that super AA. AJ wins here not because he got a pin but because he beat Cena clean. That’s a very, VERY short list and that’s what makes it feel so important. Think back to how big of a deal it was when Warrior pinned Hogan clean. That felt like an era changing win, and while this isn’t quite that big, it’s the same idea.

Oh yeah and it’s an outstanding match and possibly the Match of the Year. This was the heavyweight slugfest formula as they beat the heck out of each other with both guys hitting everything they could until one of them couldn’t get up. That’s a really hard match to pull off and these two did it in an incredible match. It belonged on the grand stage and gives Cena one heck of a mountain to overcome, which he somehow did in a better match at the Royal Rumble.

Post match Cena takes off his wristband and leaves it in the ring. He would do dark matches for a few weeks and then be back wrestling on TV in less than a month so this didn’t mean anything.

Some fans won a contest and got some stuff. In other words, let the fans have a breather.

Here’s Jon Stewart for your celebrity appearance. He makes fun of himself for interfering in Cena’s match last year and says the big lesson he learned was to tuck your shirt in when you’re taking an AA. As for tonight though, he’s here to be in New Day’s corner to help deal with Anderson and Gallows. In honor of the moment, he throws on a unicorn horn and does Big E.’s (out injured due to getting crotched against the post) entrance.

Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Anderson and Gallows

New Day is defending of course and unfortunately Anderson and Gallows are still doing their stupid doctor nonsense, complete with jars for Kofi, Xavier and Jon’s testicles. I hear Paige can help you with one of those. Anderson headlocks Kofi down to start but he’s right back up with the jumping back elbow to the jaw. Kofi flips onto his feet and gets two off the standing double stomp. You can tell the fans are still recovering from the previous match and it’s off to Woods.

That goes badly as the he gets taken into the corner for a beating from Gallows. At least it does bring the fans back a bit with the rhythmic clapping. Gallows gets taken into the corner for the Unicorn Stampede (which they’ve kind of stopped doing in recent months) and the fans are really not responding. Woods sends him outside so Kofi can hit a running dive (while posing in the air) to take him down again. Back in and Gallows kicks Kofi in the head to take over for real this time with Anderson working on the arm.

That goes nowhere as the hot tag brings in Woods to clean house. Anderson sends him to the apron for an enziguri, setting up the rope walk elbow drop. Everything breaks down and Anderson kicks Kofi in the chest, setting up the Magic Killer. Stewart gets in though and it’s time to crotch him as well. Hang on though as he has to tuck in his shirt first. Cue the returning Big E. for the save though and that’s a DQ at 9:09.

Rating: D. I don’t know if it was the previous match or what but sweet goodness the fans did NOT care for this one. It’s not a good match in the first place as Anderson and Gallows aren’t funny in the doctor roles, but the bigger problem here was the focus being on Stewart at the end. Oh and the ending sets up a rematch, which really isn’t what they need to be going with here. Bad match but Big E.’s return did wake up the crowd.

Big E. drinks the fluid in the jar holding his “testicles”. Stewart dances with New Day and the fans…well they care when Big E. dances at least.

We recap Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler. Dolph won a six way match to earn the shot and then it all went nuts. Ziggler started talking about how he was tired of being told that he always either too good or not good enough. It was time to turn up the jets and become champion for the third time. Serious Ziggler was nice but I don’t think anyone was buying him as having a real chance here. You know, because he’s Dolph Ziggler.

Smackdown World Title: Dolph Ziggler vs. Dean Ambrose

Dean is defending and Shane and Daniel are here for no apparent reason. The fans are behind Ziggler and they trade some grappling on the mat with Ziggler getting the better of it (not exactly a surprise). The threat of a neckbreaker sends Ambrose bailing to the floor so Dolph splashes him against the barricade.

Back in and Ziggler’s jumping DDT is countered with Dean throwing him outside again. Ziggler escapes a super Dirty Deeds so Dean slaps on a half crab of all things. You can tell Dean is playing the subtle heel here as the smark crowd is always going to cheer for Ziggler. Dean heads up top and gets dropkicked out of the air but he’s right back with a double chickenwing facebuster.

Ambrose tunes up the band (which is now mocking Ziggler instead of anything involving Shawn Michaels) but shakes his head and tries Dirty Deeds instead. That’s reversed into the jumping DDT and both guys are down again. A double collision gives us another lay down period until Dean is up first and hammering away.

The top rope elbow gets two so Ziggler grabs the sleeper, earning them both a tumble out to the floor. Ziggler gets in the superkick on the floor but it’s barely two back inside. The Zig Zag gets the same but Dean pops back up with the rebound lariat. Ziggler catches Dean on top and pulls him back down, right into Dirty Deeds to retain the title at 15:22.

Rating: D+. And that people, is Ziggler choking again. This would lead to him saying he’s never won the big one, which would turn into him never holding the World Title that long because holding the title is more important than winning it. The match was nothing all that good as we were just waiting on Dirty Deeds, which only happened so Dean could keep it warm for AJ next month. That was completely obvious the second AJ pinned Cena again and that’s all this title needed to do.

Package on Summerslam weekend.

Natalya/Alexa Bliss/Eva Marie vs. Becky Lynch/Naomi/Carmella

Dang I didn’t know the Glow was a year old. Actually hang on a minute as Eva Marie is suffering from exhaustion, anxiety and stress (likely brought on by reading too many Wellness Violation messages, which meant she would never wrestle again) so we have a replacement. At least we got that amazing entrance one more time.

Natalya/Alexa Bliss/Nikki Bella vs. Becky Lynch/Naomi/Carmella

So yeah, you know full well that Nikki is going to be all that matters in this match because IT’S HER BIG COMEBACK THAT EVERYONE TOTALLY CARES ABOUT BECAUSE WE LOVE HER SO MUCH! She does get one heck of a pop though, which is rather scary. During her entrance, Mauro declares her return “miraculous”. Oh man this is going to be a long one.

Bliss rolls Becky up to start and gets in a hard slap for good measure. Naomi comes in to scare Alexa off so it’s Natalya instead. A forearm puts Natalya down and the splits legdrop gets two. Carmella comes in for the Staten Island Shuffle before a missed charge sends Natalya outside. Back in and a powerslam out of the corner plants Carmella before it’s off to Nikki, the heel, for a strong face pop.

We hit the chinlock but hang on as we need some Nikki pushups. Alexa chokeshoves Carmella down for the moonsault knees to the ribs as the crowd is dead all over again. The abdominal stretch keeps things slow until Carmella finally rolls over and makes the hot tag to Becky. All three heels are send into the corner for the springboard kicks from Lynch, followed by a Bexploder on Natalya.

Becky’s top rope legdrop gets two with Nikki making the save. A blind tag brings in Naomi for the dancing kicks with the fans just not reacting at all. Bliss’ springboard splash hits knees so it’s off to Nikki vs. Carmella. A bad looking Bronco Buster gets two on Nikki and everything breaks down. Nikki’s big forearm sets up the Rack Attack 2.0 (Nikki: “I’m back.”) for the pin at 11:16.

Rating: D. This was all about Nikki’s return and that’s not enough to carry a dull match. Naomi’s Glow stuff wasn’t over yet, Becky was stuck around people who weren’t up to her level and Carmella was showing that she didn’t need to be on the main roster yet. The same was true for Alexa and Natalya was her usual self. Just not a good match and it showed the lack of depth to the division.

We recap Rusev vs. Roman Reigns. Rusev and Lana were married and so Reigns interrupted for no apparent reason to insult them and shove them into a cake.

Maria Menunos interviews Rusev and Lana, who don’t like her questions about Reigns. They won’t stand for this and Lana is sure that her husband will destroy Reigns.

We recap the Universal Title match. Basically we need a new title due to the Brand Split and Universal Title was the best they could come up with. Seth Rollins was put into the match as Raw’s #1 draft pick and Finn Balor earned his way in by winning a series of matches. Not much else to it as there’s no major animosity between them but it’s better than pulling the title out of a suitcase.

Seth did get in a great promo talking about how he’s done everything Balor has done but he’s done it a little bit better. He’s not wrong, though that’s not the best thing to do when you have someone so new to the main roster. Then Balor showed up as the Demon and scared Rollins to death.

Universal Title: Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins

Anything goes and the title (which isn’t that well received due to a bad case of being hideous) is vacant coming in. Unless I’m forgetting something, to date this is the only time Balor has wrestled as the Demon on the main roster. We get the Big Match Intros and the title itself receives some hearty boos. Balor dropkicks him into the corner at the bell but it’s too early for the Coup de Grace.

Instead Balor hits a suicide dive to the floor, followed by some kicks to the knee back inside. They head outside again with Seth getting in his first offense via a suplex on the floor. Balor is right back with something like a Phenomenal Forearm off the barricade. Back in again and Balor hits a basement dropkick for two as this is almost one sided so far. Finn stays on the leg as the fans are singing something.

Balor jumps over the ropes but Rollins slides between his legs and powerbombs him into the barricade, completely destroying Balor’s shoulder and putting him on the shelf for the better part of eight months. We’re less than four minutes in though and you can see the shoulder looking all messed up. Back in and Seth gets two off a backbreaker, setting up a chinlock. The chants are still going and it sounds like THAT TITLE SUCKS to the tune of John Cena Sucks.

Seth starts the trash talk and cuts off a comeback attempt. A snapmare into a kick to the back has Finn in even more trouble but Seth would rather walk around than follow up. It’s back to the chinlock for a good while until the springboard knee to the head sets up Seth’s frog splash for two. What looks like a Rainmaker is countered into a DDT to give Balor his first major offense in a long time and he follows up with some forearms.

A basement dropkick sets up the Sling Blade but Seth kicks him down without much effort. An enziguri stuns Balor but he’s right back with the Pele, earning a very nice round of applause. If nothing else the chants about the title have stopped. 1916 (reverse implant DDT) gives Finn two but the Coup de Grace is countered into a triangle choke of all things. Finn falls outside because rope breaks don’t count (anything goes remember) and things slow down a bit.

Back in and the buckle bomb sets up the low superkick for two on Balor with Seth looking stunned on the kickout. A small package driver gets the same count and reaction so Seth goes up, allowing Balor to hit a very loud enziguri to put him on the floor. Balor adds a shotgun dropkick to send him into the barricade, followed by a top rope double stomp to the back of the head for two. The Coup de Grace misses and it’s a Pedigree for two. Finn counters a second Pedigree into a double stomp, followed by the Coup de Grace for the pin and the title at 19:23.

Rating: B+. When you factor in that shoulder injury, this is quite the impressive performance. Above all else though, how good is it that Balor won the title here? If he loses his first major pay per view match and then goes away until April, he’s lucky to come back to the cruiserweight division.

This was a heck of a match with both guys beating the heck out of each other. It took some time to get built up but once they finally got there, the fans really started to accept things, which is a very positive sign. Balor is someone who is going to get a very positive reaction no matter what and giving him the title here was entirely the right call.

Balor can barely move his right arm after the match but finally holds the title up. On his WWE 24 special, he said you could feel and hear the shoulder crunching and crackling as he lifted the title and it probably did more damage to the arm.

The pre-show channel chats a bit and throws us to a KFC ad with Dolph Ziggler dressing up as Colonel Sanders to beat up Miz dressed as a chicken. It’s actually dumber than you remember it being.

Here’s Lana to introduce Rusev, albeit while wearing half of a wedding dress, the bottom of which looks like a diaper. She’s one of the most beautiful women on the roster but she looks ridiculous here.

US Title: Rusev vs. Roman Reigns

Roman is challenging and the booing is strong with this one. Rusev jumps him before the bell and they fight out to the floor with Roman being sent into the steps. The fans chant RUSEV MACHKA because they’ve given up on America over their hatred for Reigns. Roman gets in a Superman Punch as the bell hasn’t rung yet. They fight over a chair with Reigns getting the better of it and destroying Rusev. Reigns finally leaves but comes back with a spear, all while the fans chant WE WANT SLATER. No match of course, likely due to time issues.

We recap Randy Orton vs. Brock Lesnar. This match was announced as Orton’s return match from surgery and the build focused on Orton being able to hit the RKO anytime, including a sweet moment where Orton interrupted a Lesnar promo with an RKO. The hype video even includes some OVW clips as they came up through developmental together and debuted within a few months of each other. This had a heck of a build and felt like something important but the question was whether Lesnar would have an actual match or just do his usual Lesnar stuff.

Randy Orton vs. Brock Lesnar

Heyman handles Lesnar’s introduction, saying he’s conquering out of the University of Suplex City. Brock seems to get into his MMA stance to start before driving Orton into the corner for the shoulders to the ribs. Orton escapes the first German suplex attempt but can’t hit the RKO.

Now the first suplex connects (with Mauro knowing that it’s the 33^rd Lesnar has hit at Summerslam because he’s awesome that way) and Brock follows with two more. Orton is almost out on his feet so Lesnar suplexes him again. It’s nothing but suplexes at this point and it’s already getting dull. They head outside for a much needed change of pace with Orton being thrown over the announcers’ table.

Orton gets thrown from the front row through the table as this is dominance. The other table is loaded up but whatever Lesnar is trying is countered into the RKO onto (not through) the table. The hanging DDT plants Lesnar back inside and another RKO gets two. Orton realizes he has no choice and tries the Punt, only to have it reversed into the F5 (bad one) for two more.

That’s enough for Lesnar so he takes off the gloves and pads and hammers on Orton. An elbow to the head actually busts Orton open VERY badly. Lesnar just keeps hammering on him while the fans chant GOLDBERG until the referee FINALLY stops it at 11:47. I’ve heard a bunch of answers about what happened but I believe this was the planned ending and a hard way opening.

Rating: D. Yeah this didn’t work when it happened and it didn’t work again this time around. Lesnar suplexing Orton for five minutes then selling a few big moves doesn’t make me think it’s an awesome main event. This was everything wrong with Lesnar’s current WWE run in one match and that made for a really dull match, save for the odd finish that seemed designed to protect Orton. You know, after he was basically squashed.

Lesnar keeps hammering on him until the always intimidating Shane McMahon comes out, earning himself an F5 (which thankfully didn’t lead anywhere). Heyman panics as they leave to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. If you cut an hour (or more) out of this, it’s bordering on the classic level. As it is, this is just a good show that runs WAY too long. At some point you have to cut something out and WWE just refuses to do that. Cut out the Dudleys match or the women’s tag and give us some breathing room here because sweet goodness this show could use it.

Now that being said, there’s some outstanding stuff on here with the Styles vs. Cena match as an instant classic, the Women’s Title being very good, a great Universal Title match and really only the Tag Team Title match being without much value. The show is certainly good and the positives outweigh the negatives but unless the show is a masterpiece, fans are going to start losing interest near the end. It’s a solid show but cut out a good forty minutes to really make it great.

Ratings Comparison

American Alpha/Hype Bros/Usos vs. Breezango/Ascension/Vaudevillains

Original: C

2017 Redo: B-

Dudley Boyz vs. Neville/Sami Zayn

Original: C

2017 Redo: C-

Sheamus vs. Cesaro

Original: B-

2017 Redo: B

Chris Jericho/Kevin Owens vs. Enzo Amore/Big Cass

Original: C+

2017 Redo: C+

Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte

Original: B

2017 Redo: B

Miz vs. Apollo Crews

Original: C

2017 Redo: D+

John Cena vs. AJ Styles

Original: A

2017 Redo: A

New Day vs. Anderson and Gallows

Original: D+

2017 Redo: D

Dolph Ziggler vs. Dean Ambrose

Original: B-

2017 Redo: D+

Natalya/Alexa Bliss/Nikki Bella vs. Becky Lynch/Naomi/Carmella

Original: C

2017 Redo: D

Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins

Original: B+

2017 Redo: D+

Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton

Original: C+

2017 Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original: B

2017 Redo: B-

That’s quite the drop on Ambrose vs. Ziggler and Lesnar vs. Orton. Some of them are spot on though and that’s not the biggest surprise.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2016/08/21/summerslam-2016-they-didnt/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: August 14, 2018
Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, South Carolina
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

It’s the final show before Summerslam and there isn’t much to do this time around. Sunday is set up and unless they add one more match to the card, which is entirely possible around here, I wouldn’t get my hopes up on much happening tonight. Hopefully the promos are good enough to carry things. Let’s get to it.

Charlotte, Becky Lynch and Carmella all come to the ring to open things up. Carmella isn’t happy with having to defend the title in the triple threat match but she’s so awesome that it doesn’t matter. Becky doesn’t have a chance now and should probably go back to being a clown, because it’s the one thing she does better than Charlotte.

It’s true that Becky doesn’t want Charlotte in the match because she’s going to make it harder to win. Becky was losing sleep over the idea of beating up Carmella one on one but now she’s dreaming of beating them both. Carmella laughs off the idea of Becky beating Charlotte because it’s really hard to do. I mean, Carmella did it twice (and beat Asuka twice) but Becky isn’t doing it.

Charlotte points out all the cheating and thinks it’s why no one respects her. Or is it because Carmella is a Diva living in a women’s era? Are we really going back to that again? It must be Total Divas season again. Anyway, Carmella is proud of being a Diva because neither of them have her looks, body or career. Cue Paige to thank Carmella for losing to Charlotte so the match can be a triple threat. It’s Paige’s job to give us good competition so let’s have a tag match right now with Carmella on commentary.

Becky Lynch/Carmella vs. Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville

Carmella is on commentary as Charlotte avoids some early kicks from Sonya. That means a strut, which is of course crazy over here in Flair Country. A few chops put Sonya in the corner and it’s Becky coming in for the running legdrop after what looked like some confusion (it looked like Becky wasn’t sure what to do, maybe due to Sonya not being in the right place).

Mandy comes in and has some better luck, including posing a lot. It takes a bit too long though and Becky scores with a dropkick, allowing the tag off to Charlotte. Sonya comes back in and misses a sliding knee, allowing Charlotte to throw her down with a fall away slam to send Sonya outside.

Becky adds a forearm from the apron as Corey and Carmella take shots at Saxton. A cheap shot from the apron knocks Carmella down though and we take a break. Back with Sonya choking Becky until an enziguri gets Lynch out of trouble. Mandy breaks up the hot tag but Becky kicks her in the face. There’s the Bexploder to Mandy and a baseball slide to Sonya, setting up the Disarm-Her to make Mandy tap at 10:56.

Rating: C-. The story they were telling here was fine with Becky not wanting to share the spotlight, but egads Carmella and Graves were annoying on commentary. The ripping on Byron stopped being entertaining a lot time ago, which is why WWE is hammering it into the ground even more. To make it even worse, it wouldn’t shock me to see Carmella retain the title, because four months of “HAHA I’M STILL CHAMPION” hasn’t been enough.

Miz and Maryse are at home and have some huge news: there will be a second season of Miz and Mrs.!

Charlotte asks why Becky didn’t tag her in but Becky doesn’t quite answer. They agree that the best woman should win on Sunday and Becky says she will.

Triple Threat vs. Bludgeon Brothers

No names for the jobbers. The Brothers jump them to start and knock the trio to the floor. Rowan slams Harper onto one of them as I don’t think the bell ever rang. The crushed one gets slammed onto the member on the apron, followed by a powerbomb/middle rope clothesline combination. No match.

We get part one of a three part series on Miz vs. Daniel Bryan. It starts with Bryan debuting in NXT, back in the competition days with Bryan as a rookie and Miz as his pro. Bryan was new to WWE, even though he had been wrestling for over ten years. Miz had a reputation of a reality TV star and we see some clips of Miz yelling at Bryan and talking down to him.

Miz says all Bryan had to do was shut up and listen, which is why the whole thing failed. Then Bryan was eliminated fairly on in the competition, partially due to going 0-10. Bryan got a match on Raw against Miz and beat him, so maybe Miz needed Bryan instead of vice versa. More on this later.

Sanity vs. New Day

Kofi has a Birthday Boy sign and celebrates by throwing out some pancakes. Big E. and Young start things off as we have a HAPPY BIRTHDAY chant. A belly to belly suplex puts Young down and it’s off to Kofi, who jumps over Big E. for a backsplash. Wolfe low bridges Kofi to the floor though and a big crash puts Kingston in trouble. We go split screen for a Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar video and come back with Dain dropkicking Kofi into the corner.

Wolfe’s top rope forearm gets two and we take a break. Back with Kofi hitting a DDT on Wolfe and bringing in Woods to speed things up. The numbers game gets the better of Woods though as Young slams him onto Wolfe’s raised knees and brings Dain back in for more stomping. That doesn’t last long though as Kofi comes back in with Trouble in Paradise to Wolfe. Kofi hits the big dive off the top onto Wolfe and Young, leaving Big E. to tag himself in and scoop Dain up (with ease) for UpUpDownDown and the pin (including Big E. hip swiveling on the count) at 10:14.

Rating: C+. The ending was the right call here but egads Sanity coming up to the main roster feels like a big waste of time. I don’t think they’ve won an important match yet and they’re just around to put over teams like New Day and the Usos at the moment. Maybe they can get a story after Summerslam, but for now it’s not working.

Here’s part two of Miz vs. Bryan. We start with Bryan’s retirement in 2016 but Bryan said he wasn’t ready to leave yet. Miz says it’s Bryan’s fault for wrestling such a reckless style. Bryan couldn’t wrestle like the coward that Miz is, but before that could go anywhere he got the chance to be General Manager of Smackdown.

That led us to the famous Talking Smack segment where Bryan called Miz a coward, sending Miz into the rant of a lifetime against Bryan for being the real coward. Bryan said he had to leave without doing something he would have regretted. Miz thinks Bryan would have been fired for being a man but left instead. Then Miz started stealing Miz’s moves but Bryan started training for a comeback. Miz thinks Bryan is the coward, and he’s ready to prove it.

Paige knocks on Samoa Joe’s door and asks why he doesn’t want to address the WWE Universe separately from AJ Styles. She needs Joe to be professional, but Joe doesn’t think that’s what Paige was looking for when she made the match in the first place. Joe isn’t saying what he’s going to do and Paige can deal with the consequences. Paige can enjoy her night, just like Joe is going to enjoy his.

We recap the Lana/Rusev vs. Zelina Vega/Andrade Cien Almas issues.

Aiden English vs. Andrade Cien Almas

Before the match, Aiden sings about fighting for Rusev Day. Joined in progress with English hitting a clothesline and adding a frog splash (with an Eddie Guerrero chest slap) for two. Almas elbows him in the face though and the running knees in the corner set up the hammerlock DDT to finish Aiden at 1:26 shown.

Post match Vega and Almas say Sunday is the end of Rusev Day. Vega accuses Lana of being the dead weight that drags down Rusev, but here are Rusev and Lana to interrupt. Rusev promises to end Vega’s luck and Lana, with the accent coming in and out, promises to crush them because Summerslam is on Rusev Day. These four can’t get on the main show but Baron Corbin vs. Finn Balor can?

Paige begs AJ to keep it together out there with Samoa Joe. AJ says he’s keeping his promise.

Part three of Miz vs. Bryan focuses on Bryan’s return to in-ring competition, which he never thought would happen. Miz didn’t care that Bryan came out of retirement because they were on different shows. Bryan stepped down as Smackdown GM, but before he left he insisted that Miz move over to Smackdown. Miz says Bryan has embarrassed himself over and over again because Miz has carried him all these years. After Summerslam, Bryan will have to admit that Miz is the better man.

Bryan admits that Miz has a bunch of things that he’ll never have, but that’s not why Bryan came back. He’s not back to have a big house and celebrity friends. He’s back because he loves wrestling and wants to do nothing more than prove that he’s the better man. These were all great videos and while there’s no chance it’s going to happen (and I understand why not), there’s a case to be made for this closing Summerslam.

Shelton Benjamin vs. Jeff Hardy

Joined in progress with Shelton putting on a chinlock. The BROTHER NERO chants bring Jeff up and let’s go split screen for a Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss ad less than a minute after we’re back to the show. Jeff….I guess hits Whisper in the Wind as he jumped for it while we were still in split screen but the contact was cut off by a full screen Summerslam graphic. Thankfully the replay shows it connecting for the subsequent two count, followed by the basement dropkick for the same.

The kick to the chest puts Benjamin down and it’s the reverse Twist of Fate to make things even worse. Benjamin is too far away for the Swanton so he pulls Hardy down with a superplex for two. That’s it for Shelton though as the Twisting Stunner (stop calling it the Twist of Fate) is good for the pin at 4:12.

Rating: C-. Well what we could see in full was fine but the inset promos strike again. As usual they have nothing better to do that fill a show with ads, even though WWE TV tends to mostly be ads for their bigger shows in the first place. Hardy vs. Nakamura could be anywhere between interesting and a mess but it should be fun to watch either way.

Post match Shinsuke Nakamura comes out and knees Hardy in the back but Kinshasa is reversed into a Twisting Stunner. The Swanton leaves Nakamura laying as Randy Orton is shown watching from the shadows.

Summerslam rundown.

Here’s AJ Styles for the big closing segment. He talks about his time in this business, which has allowed him to travel the world and face the best in the world. Sure there’s pressure to being WWE Champion, but Samoa Joe hit his pressure points. We see a clip of Joe attacking AJ and signing the contract, followed by Joe talking about AJ’s family cheering for Joe at Summerslam. That was too far for AJ, who was ready to take Joe out until he saw his family. AJ’s wife told him to not lose his cool and AJ is ready….to be cut off by Joe.

With a piece of paper in his hand, Joe says AJ knows that’s not true. The paper is a letter from a fan which AJ needs to hear. The letter says that Joe’s comments a few weeks ago made the person physically ill. Not because he was wrong, but because what Joe said was true. Now it’s clear that AJ never wanted kids or a wife, which is why AJ is such a great champion: he’ll do anything to stay away from his family. The fan hopes Joe wins because he lost AJ a long time ago. Signed Wendy Styles (AJ’s wife). Well that worked. Very well actually.

Overall Rating: C+. It’s kind of amazing what a lack of Roman Reigns will do for a show. When that isn’t being focused on all night long, the show is that much easier to watch. The difference between Raw and Smackdown continues to be about how many things get a focus. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar dominated last night’s show, along with the other bad match that Raw focuses on. Bryan vs. Miz got a lot of time tonight, but it’s the right kind of focus. Smackdown doesn’t have that annoying stretch that Raw tends to go through every week and it makes a world of difference.

Results

Becky Lynch/Charlotte b. Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville – Disarm-Her to Rose

New Day b. Sanity – UpUpDownDown to Dain

Andrade Cien Almas b. Aiden English – Hammerlock DDT

Jeff Hardy b. Shelton Benjamin – Twisting Stunner

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: August 7, 2018
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

We’re in the final stages of the Summerslam build and that means there isn’t much left to do. The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan match was confirmed earlier today so, aside from setting up the Tag Team Title match, everything is going to be ready pretty soon. That means we only have to get through the rest of the build, which can make for some fun television. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Randy Orton to a heck of a face reaction to open things up. Orton talks about Jeff Hardy calling him out last week and we see the beatdown that ensued, including Orton wiping away Hardy’s face paint. He liked feeling Hardy squirm last week because he’s here to take out everyone that the fans have put on a pedestal. Orton is going to become so violent that he’s going to make people want to change the channel.

You can believe in your superheros like Hardy but Orton is here to destroy them all. When he started his career here, he was the youngest guy in that locker room. Since then he’s become a thirteen time World Champion and won everything that there is to win. The fans have made their choice and Orton has chosen to erase everyone the fans believe in. You can call him the Legend Killer, the Viper, the Apex Predator or whatever else you want, but all that matters is RKO.

I’m digging this Orton character change. He’s someone who has a long history and has done almost everything he can do in WWE. Changing things up like this is a great idea and one of the only ways you can get him booed as a heel. Orton is so good at what he does but he needs to be freshened up a bit. Having him go after the popular guys is a good idea, but he’s going to be turned into a face again by the end of it because of how well he pulls the thing off.

Becky Lynch and Charlotte are in the back to discuss Charlotte being added to the Women’s Title match. Lynch was really looking forward to getting a shot at the title, but now there’s a big blonde boulder in the way. Charlotte did what she had to do and Lynch is cool with that. They’re fine for their tag match tonight because they’re not like Sasha and Bayley.

Charlotte/Becky Lynch vs. Iconics

Carmella is on commentary. Before the match, the Iconics play a word association game about how sad this place is and how Carmella is going to win. Becky is going to stay in Charlotte’s shadow because she’s always a bridesmaid and never a bride. As usual, history isn’t WWE’s strong suit. The fans dub this boring, though it’s hardly that bad. Charlotte starts in on Billie’s arm to start and a pair of double hiptosses have both Aussies down. It’s too early for the Disarm-Her though and they bail to the floor. Charlotte dives onto both of them as we take a break.

Back with Billie and Charlotte hitting stereo big boots because Smackdown isn’t the kind of show that has to comeback from a commercial with a chinlock. Becky gets the tag and starts cleaning house but Billie breaks up the Disarm-Her. Charlotte tags herself back in and moonsaults onto both of them, setting up the Figure Eight to make Peyton tap at 6:18. Way too little shown to rate but the idea here was Charlotte stealing the spotlight.

New Day is proud of their commentary last week but now it’s time to try their hand at backstage interviewing, with Kofi in a blue suit and blond wig. They’re not worried about facing the Bar or the Bludgeon Brothers because both teams will bow down to the power of positivity. New Day cracks up and says they can do that too. Even Renee Young is smiling.

Earlier today, Miz accepted Daniel Bryan’s challenge for Summerslam.

Byron Saxton will have an interview with Miz later tonight and Corey Graves is stunned.

Becky and Charlotte are excited about their win but things will be different at Summerslam. They’ll have to be great against each other instead of with each other.

Video on AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe, set to Joe’s great promo from last week about how Styles has sacrificed everything to be WWE Champion, including his family. AJ’s family will be cheering for Joe at Summerslam so daddy will finally be home.

Here’s AJ for a chat. AJ talks about how a lot of things go on between these ropes, including a lot of trash talking. That can get personal and Samoa Joe did that last week. AJ is doing this for his family, just like a lot of people do. That’s what he’s supposed to do as a father and as a man. He misses his kids’ little league game and birthdays. Two days ago, he celebrated 18 years with his wife, but she’s basically a single parent because he can’t be there. We’re supposed to give our families what they need and occasionally you can give them what they want.

AJ wants to be there to pick his kids up when they fall and Joe knows all of this. Joe knows AJ’s wife and kids and AJ isn’t going to let Joe get his hands on this title. At Summerslam, Joe isn’t walking out the WWE Champion because he’ll be lucky to walk out period. Very intense stuff from AJ here, which is a place he doesn’t go to very often. It’s also nice to have these promos not be interrupted by something or someone. Just let them talk and see what they can do.

Lana is getting ready for her rematch with Zelina Vega when Rusev comes up. He’ll be in her corner tonight to make sure it’s a Happy Lana Day. That makes Lana happy but here’s Aiden English to apologize to her again. Rusev accepts, but thinks English should stay in the back tonight. English looks disappointed.

Lana vs. Zelina Vega

Rematch from last week with Rusev and Andrade Cien Almas as the seconds. Vega slaps her in the face to start and gets kicked to the floor. That lasts all of two seconds as Lana throws her back in to start the brawling. Zelina’s chinlock doesn’t last long as Lana suplexes her down and drops some elbows. Almas jumps onto the apron and the distraction lets Vega score with a jawbreaker. Rusev throws Almas around but Vega kicks him in the back of the head. That earns Rusev a posting but Lana kicks Vega in the head. Cue English to save Rusev, knocking Lana down again. The running knees in the corner finish Lana at 3:36.

Rating: D+. Much like last week, the match wasn’t great but Lana didn’t embarrass herself out there, which means she’s making actual progress. She already has the charisma and the association with an act like Rusev Day could allow her to go pretty far. As is the case with so many people, she just needs ring time so having matches like this is the best thing for her.

Shinsuke Nakamura isn’t going to be facing Jeff Hardy at Summerslam because Hardy was erased. He’ll face what’s left of Hardy, but here’s R-Truth to challenge Nakamura for the US Title instead. Nakamura: “How are you going to do that?” R-Truth: “The same way everyone else does: I’m going to pin Carmella.” Nakamura speaks Japanese and Truth is horrified, because he can’t repeat that in public. It’s bad enough that the match with Carmella is off and he wants Nakamura tonight. Truth continues to be one of the funniest guys in WWE, just by following WWE logic.

Byron is in the ring to interview Miz, who pops up on screen instead of coming to the ring. He calls Byron a bad announcer and plugs the success of Miz and Mrs., which doesn’t have a single bad review on Rotten Tomatoes. Byron keeps asking about the match with Bryan but Miz ignores him to plug the show. Tonight he learns CPR, which would be a good idea for Bryan because he needs to resuscitate his career. Miz finally mentions it, saying he’s become a star while Bryan has been working in a garden.

Bryan needs this match while Miz needs to be recognized as WWE Champion. Miz is here night after night while Bryan has been off in bed crying. He’s not hiding from anyone and at Summerslam, Bryan is getting exposed as being beneath Miz. Go talk to Bryan about it because he’s probably off eating kale and talking about his wife. Bryan runs into the room, beats up security and punches Miz a few times until a potted plant to the back of the head lets Miz escape. The string of good promos continues tonight, but that kind of goes without saying for these two.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. R-Truth

Non-title. Corey says he can understand more of Nakamura’s song than Truth’s. Nakamura chokes him in the corner and says COME ON so Truth charges at him with a rollup. Now it’s Truth shouting COME ON before taking him down with a hurricanrana. Nakamura gets in a kick to the back of the head and hooks a triangle choke but Truth gets over to a rope. A reverse exploder puts Truth down and Kinshasa is good for the pin at 3:13.

Rating: D. Exactly what you would expect here with Truth getting in some entertaining stuff but falling short against the bigger name. It’s rather impressive that Truth is still completely watchable at 46 years old, which is far beyond the end a lot of careers. If nothing else just let him do his funny cameos in the back and he’ll be around forever.

You know how the Bludgeon Brothers haven’t cared who they fight at Summerslam? It’s still true as they promise to break whoever faces them both physically and mentally. They’re going to have fun.

Bludgeon Brothers vs. 3SK

Non-title as this is a 3-2 handicap match. The Brothers dropkick two of the guys off the apron (Roman Reigns Starter Kit and Tazz Jr. according to Graves) and Rowan crossbodies them. The other guy gets kicked in the face and Harper is slammed onto the other two. A powerbomb/middle rope clothesline combination gives Harper the pin at 1:27. That’s the kind of squash that makes these two look great.

Summerslam rundown.

Tag Team Title Tournament Finals: New Day vs. The Bar

The winners get a shot at Summerslam. The fans want pancakes so Xavier Woods, on the floor for this one, throws some into the crowd. Big E. and Cesaro actually grapple a bit to start but it’s time to swivel the hips. Kofi comes in and sticks the landing on a monkey flip to frustrate Cesaro even more. It’s off to Sheamus, who knocks Kofi to the floor in a heap so New Day stops to check on him. A hard uppercut keeps Kofi down and Cesaro grabs a chinlock back inside.

Back from a break with Kofi still in trouble (but not in a chinlock) but avoiding a charge so Big E. can come in for the belly to belly suplexes. More hip swiveling (it’s his gimmick) looks to set up the Warrior Splash but Big E. has to knock Cesaro off the apron instead. A Rock Bottom out of the corner gives Big E. two on Sheamus and it’s back to Kofi vs. Cesaro. The SOS gives Kofi two but Big E. makes a hot tag, only to miss the apron splash. He seems to have banged up his arm and the distracted Kofi takes the Regal Roll on the floor.

A double implant DDT gets two on Big E., with the fans sounding very relieved on the kickout. We settle back down with Big E. in trouble and take a second break. Back again with Big E. still in trouble, including Sheamus kicking him in the face to set up Cesaro’s superplex into a top rope knee from Sheamus. That’s only good for two though so Sheamus tries a Texas Cloverleaf.

Big E. uses the leg strength to kick him to the floor though and the hot tag brings in Kofi. A springboard shot to the head drops Sheamus and the Boom Drop has him in even more trouble. Air Kofi hits both Sheamus and Cesaro, followed by a top rope double stomp for two on Cesaro. Big E. is sent outside again and a double backbreaker gets two on Kofi. The Brogue Kick misses and Kofi’s dropkick is enough to bring Big E. back in.

The Midnight Hour is quickly broken up though and a spike White Noise gets….two again as Kofi makes a very last second save. Cesaro swings Big E. into the Sharpshooter as Kofi hits a tornado DDT to plant Sheamus on the floor. Big E. can’t get to the ropes as Cesaro rolls over into a Crossface. That’s powered out as well, with Big E. muscling him up (that’s just scary strength) into the Midnight Hour for the pin on Cesaro at 25:10.

Rating: A-. Now that’s more like it with two great teams getting to show off for a long time in an entertaining match. New Day winning wasn’t the biggest surprise in the world and it’s VERY nice to not go to another triple threat match, which I was expecting for a long time during the match. The Bar not being able to make TV for months is absurd given how awesome they were here, but you can’t expect something like that to matter in wrestling.

The Bludgeon Brothers look on to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was an excellent show with great promos and an outstanding main event with everyone working hard and getting ready for Summerslam. It’s amazing how much better this was than Monday Night Raw, which was downright unwatchable last night. Just go with a build that works and isn’t full of rematches, bad promos and Roman Reigns overload. Is that really too much to ask?

Results

Becky Lynch/Charlotte b. Iconics – Figure Eight to Royce

Zelina Vega b. Lana – Running knees in the corner

Shinsuke Nakamura b. R-Truth – Kinshasa

Bludgeon Brothers b. 3SK – Powerbomb/Middle rope combination to ???

New Day b. The Bar – Midnight Hour to Cesaro

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Main Event
Date: July 26, 2018
Location: US Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson, Vic Joseph

Hopefully things pick up a little bit this week as last week’s show was basically the shortened version of Raw. I have no idea why WWE thinks there’s no need to focus on Smackdown, especially when it’s going to become the bigger show next year. Maybe this week will be different but I don’t have the highest hopes. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Zack Ryder vs. Mike Kanellis

I saw this one at a house show two days earlier and hopefully it’s better. Ryder hits an early faceplant for one but gets choked in the corner to slow things back down. Nigel quotes Power of Love to make things a little more pleasant as Kanellis puts on a reverse chinlock. Ryder fights up and sends him into the corner, setting up a running knee. The Broski Boot misses (as it so often does) so Ryder goes with a dropkick through the ropes instead. Back in and Kanellis catches him on top, setting up a superplex. A superkick gets two but Ryder slips out of a suplex and hits the Rough Ryder for the pin at 5:39.

Rating: D+. Ryder is always going to get some kind of a reaction but Kanellis is just a good theme song and another reminder that Maria isn’t here. He’s just a warm body at this point and that’s not going to get him much further than what we have here. At least Ryder got the crowd going, which is why you put him in a spot like this.

We take a very quick look at Stephanie’s announcement from Raw.

From Smackdown. It’s nice for a change.

Carmella vs. Becky Lynch

Non-title but Becky gets a Summerslam title shot if she wins. Becky goes straight for the arm to start but Carmella hits her in the face. A trip to the floor goes badly for Becky and we take an early break. Back with Becky starting her comeback, meaning it’s time for clotheslines. There’s the Bexploder but Becky misses the top rope legdrop. Carmella kicks her in the face for two and frustration is setting in. Not that it matters as the Disarm-Her sends Becky to Summerslam at 7:10.

Rating: D+. I really could go for eliminating the “here’s a match to set up the same match” booking trope. Becky getting the title shot makes sense and I could certainly go for her winning the title, but they need to have a slightly better match next time. Then again, that’s not likely with Carmella in there.

From Smackdown again.

Here are Miz, Maryse and their daughter to wrap things up. Miz says we’re here to talk about the future instead of relics like Daniel Bryan. He introduces Maryse, who claims that the evolution started with her. Miz introduces his daughter, who has accomplished more in her life than Daniel Bryan (Graves made the same joke about Saxton). The fans chant for Monroe but the mere mention of Bryan has put her to sleep.

We get a clip of the show, which is a highlight of bad moments in Miz’s life and career. Bryan pops up on screen to apologize to Miz but then realizes he should do this to Miz’s face. Here’s Bryan in the arena to beat up Miz’s security but Miz throws the baby to him, revealing it to be a doll. That means a Skull Crushing Finale and a rant from Miz about how the baby earlier was an actor. Like he’d bring his real daughter to a city like this and if you want to see Monroe Sky, watch the show.

Video on WWE winning the ESPN Sports Humanitarian Award.

Chad Gable/No Way Jose vs. Ascension

Gable spins out of Viktor’s wristlock to start and slaps on an armbar. Konnor comes in and plows through Gable as we take a break. Back with Gable getting dragged into the wrong corner so a spinebuster can get two. Gable fights out of a chinlock and brings in Jose as everything breaks down. Konnor breaks up a cover but goes to the floor with Gable, leaving Viktor to take the pop up right hand for the pin at 8:16.

Rating: D+. What does it say when you’re losing to a make shift team of jobbers to the stars? Neither Jose nor Gable have anything going for them at the moment other than being thrown into a match here or there and now Ascension is losing to them too. I’m not surprised, but I am rather sad about seeing them fall so far.

Video on Bobby Lashley vs. Roman Reigns.

We look at James Ellsworth being fired, allowing Samoa Joe to attack AJ Styles and become #1 contender.

From Raw.

Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley

The winner gets Lesnar for the title at Summerslam. Reigns starts fast with the clothesline for an early two and they fight to the floor. The apron dropkick is countered into an overhead belly to belly suplex to put Reigns down and send us to a break. Back with Lashley nailing a spinebuster and grabbing a surfboard.

Reigns gets up and it’s a double clothesline for the double knockdown. They slug it out with Reigns getting the better of it and lifting Lashley to the apron, only to charge into a hard clothesline. Back in and Lashley counters the Superman Punch into a full nelson, followed by a headlock on the mat. Reigns fights up again and sends him shoulder first into the corner, meaning we get the multiple clotheslines.

Lashley is right back with a spinebuster but the spear is countered with….I’m not sure as it looked like it was supposed to be a leap frog but Reigns kneed/thighed him in the face instead. The Superman Punch gets two and Lashley rolls outside for a breather. Reigns slowly follows but can’t get the belly to belly. Instead Lashley throws him back inside for the spear and a rather near fall in a call back to Extreme Rules. Another Superman Punch rocks Lashley and the spear sends Reigns to Summerslam at 18:04.

Rating: B. I mean, is it really even surprising at this point? They’ve gone around the horn so far now that Reigns winning so often has gone from surprising to not surprising to surprising again and now back to not surprising. Who cares if this match makes Reigns 1-1 vs. Lashley? It gives Reigns another chance to fight Lesnar in the most non-epic epic feud that they’ve ever put together.

Lashley and Reigns shake hands and Lashley can barely stand in the aisle. A lot of posing ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. It’s amazing how much better this show is when we ca get a balanced look at Raw and Smackdown. The show was perfectly watchable and covered the biggest stories of the week, with only a little bit from the Stephanie announcement. The lack of hearing about it every ten seconds made this week that much easier to listen to and this served as a rather good recap of what happened. As usual, blue makes things better.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: July 24, 2018
Location: Ford Center, Evansville, Indiana
Commentators: Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

It’s a big night around here as we have the announcement of who will be challenging Smackdown World Champion AJ Styles at Summerslam. There’s one name out there that would seem to be the most likely option but you never can tell around here. We’ll have more Summerslam build to get to around here as well so let’s get to it.

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

Miz, Maryse and their daughter arrive in a limo.

Here’s Randy Orton to open things up. After a clip of his return at Extreme Rules and attack on Jeff Hardy, Orton goes over some fan theories of why he did what he did. He did it because of the fans, because he’s been here for sixteen years. Who is around that was here when he got here? No one. Uh, not really Randy. No seriously that’s a really stupid line as you have Cena, Lesnar, Hardy, Hardy, Benjamin, Angle, HHH, Stephanie, Vince, Shane and probably some more than I’m forgetting.

Anyway Orton is tired of all these people sitting at the table he created. Orton isn’t changing his merchandise every month to steal money from the fans or stealing hand gestures (the Too Sweet sign) because he didn’t need to pay his dues in front of hundreds of people. He doesn’t take months off at a time, show up for Wrestlemania season, and then leave again. He learned from the best because he deserved the best and now he knows who the real legends killers are.

The people are the real legend killers and now he’s the real legend. He’s going to destroy everyone that the fans put on a pedestal, starting with Hardy. When Orton is done with him, Hardy is gone for good. Orton doesn’t care about Hardy’s career because it’s all about writing the final chapter. You can call him the Viper, the Apex Predator, but all that matters is RKO. Good promo, one really dumb line aside.

Long look at last night’s announcement, which I’m sure won’t be the only time tonight.

Andrade Cien Almas vs. Rusev

Well this is certainly interesting, if nothing else for the managers. The guys got in an argument in the back earlier over wanting to be AJ’s opponent at Summerslam, which makes for a rather interesting match. I do like the fact that Lana is still billed as the Ravishing Russian but has completely dropped the accent outside of when she says Rusev’s name.

Rusev goes with the power to start but Almas catches himself in the ropes for the pose with Vega. Back in and a clothesline drops Almas again, meaning it’s time for Lana to pose with Rusev as we go to a break. We come back with Rusev making a comeback off a spinning kick to the face, much to Lana’s delight. A knee to the ribs sets up the Machka Kick for two and Almas’ shot to the head has almost no effect.

Almas fakes a kick to the head and scores with an elbow but Rusev kicks him in the face to block the running knees in the corner. The jumping superkick gets a heck of a RUSEV DAY chant and it’s time for the women to brawl, which really pleases the fans. Cue Aiden English to pull Lana off but Vega jumps on his back, sending him into Lana. That’s not cool with Rusev and the distraction lets Almas score with the Hammerlock DDT for the pin at 9:04.

Rating: C+. I’m very happy that Almas is getting such a big push right off the bat and the fact that it seems Rusev has turned face is a great thing. The fans are going to cheer for him and have wanted to cheer for Lana for the better part of ever so it’s not like the pairing is hard to pull off. That being said, as usual, the idea of having someone lose right around the time of their big turn isn’t the most logical booking in the world.

R-Truth isn’t happy with having to fight Samoa Joe in his first match since Wrestlemania. He asks Tye Dillinger if he remembers what Joe did to him last week but then realizes that Tye was out cold. Tye says Truth doesn’t need a pillow because he’s not going to sleep.

Post break Lana and English are arguing but Rusev cuts them both off, saying maybe neither of them are good for Rusev Day.

R-Truth vs. Samoa Joe

Joe starts fast but gets caught with a kick to the face and the spinning forearm. A headbutt and the corner Rock Bottom set up the Koquina Clutch to make Truth tap at 58 seconds.

Asuka is very excited for Evolution but tonight, Billie Kay isn’t ready for her.

Asuka vs. Billie Kay

Billie and Peyton think Evolution is iconic and they’re both better than Asuka. Asuka starts in on the arm but gets shoved down. For some reason Billie tells Asuka that she’s a loser and there’s a running dropkick. A German suplex doesn’t work so Asuka kicks her in the head for the pin at 1:47. Well at least she didn’t lose again.

Shinsuke Nakamura laughs at Jeff Hardy for losing last week.

Miz and Maryse are having their pictures taken with their daughter but have to go to another appearance.

Here’s Paige to moderate the Styles contract signing. First though, let’s talk about Evolution being all awesome. At least they keep it short. Here’s AJ, who really seems to enjoy the cheers. After he gets to talk about Evolution as well, AJ talks about how important Summerslam has been to him. It’s no different than Wrestlemania but we’ll turn the heat up a bit more.

AJ signs the contract and says he just needs an opponent. Paige asks for a drum roll and here’s….James Ellsworth. He brags about beating AJ three times before but Paige tells him to stop it because he’s a joke. James thinks Paige is a joke because of how she talks and looks so Paige fires him. Well thank goodness for that. Paige leaves with security and we follow them to the back where Ellsworth is thrown out. During the melee, Samoa Joe comes in and chokes AJ out. Joe signs and the match is on. That was the only logical choice for the opponent.

Post match Paige yells at Joe, who says that was killer instinct and phenomenal. Joe leaves and Carmella comes in, saying she’s holding the title until Evolution no matter what. Paige doesn’t seem pleased.

Carmella vs. Becky Lynch

Non-title but Becky gets a Summerslam title shot if she wins. Becky goes straight for the arm to start but Carmella hits her in the face. A trip to the floor goes badly for Becky and we take an early break. Back with Becky starting her comeback, meaning it’s time for clotheslines. There’s the Bexploder but Becky misses the top rope legdrop. Carmella kicks her in the face for two and frustration is setting in. Not that it matters as the Disarm-Her sends Becky to Summerslam at 7:10.

Rating: D+. I really could go for eliminating the “here’s a match to set up the same match” booking trope. Becky getting the title shot makes sense and I could certainly go for her winning the title, but they need to have a slightly better match next time. Then again, that’s not likely with Carmella in there.

The Bludgeon Brothers don’t care who they face.

Tag Team #1 Contenders Tournament First Round: New Day vs. Sanity

The Usos are on commentary. Woods and Wolfe start things off with a spinning forearm giving Woods two. A German suplex drops Woods though and it’s off to Dain for the backsplash. Back from a break with Woods hitting a missile dropkick as the Usos do over the top nerdy announcer voices. Big E. comes in with a bunch of suplexes but an Eric Young distraction cuts him off. Wolfe comes back in but gets knocked down, setting up the Midnight Hour for the pin at 7:34.

Rating: C-. The commercial hurt this a lot but so did the fact that it’s another tournament. I’m not sure why I’d want to see yet another one this year but it’s not the most thrilling thing in the world. It would be nice to have a personal issue with the Brothers and their challengers, though that’s not how things work around here.

Post match the Bar comes out to say they’ll win.

Miz doesn’t trust Sin Cara as a babysitter so he’ll take his daughter to the ring for the big moment.

Here are Miz, Maryse and their daughter to wrap things up. Miz says we’re here to talk about the future instead of relics like Daniel Bryan. He introduces Maryse, who claims that the evolution started with her. Miz introduces his daughter, who has accomplished more in her life than Daniel Bryan (Graves made the same joke about Saxton). The fans chant for Monroe but the mere mention of Bryan has put her to sleep.

We get a clip of the show, which is a highlight of bad moments in Miz’s life and career. Bryan pops up on screen to apologize to Miz but then realizes he should do this to Miz’s face. Here’s Bryan in the arena to beat up Miz’s security but Miz throws the baby to him, revealing it to be a doll. That means a Skull Crushing Finale and a rant from Miz about how the baby earlier was an actor. Like he’d bring his real daughter to a city like this and if you want to see Monroe Sky, watch the show.

Overall Rating: D+. I know it’s not likely to continue after this week but it’s getting a little annoying having Summerslam pushed off to the side for the sake of Evolution. Unless I’m missing something big, there was really no need to announce the show three months in advance. Even if you waited until after Summerslam, you still have two months to build it up, which is about as much as Wrestlemania. The show was pretty good with some predictable but well done results. Now that some of the matches are set we can get into more of a rhythm, but we need some more focus on what is there.

Results

Andrade Cien Almas b. Rusev – Hammerlock DDT

Samoa Joe b. R-Truth – Koquina Clutch

Asuka b. Billie Kay – Kick to the head

Becky Lynch b. Carmella – Disarm-Her

New Day b. Sanity – Midnight Hour to Wolfe

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: July 17, 2018
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

We’re past Extreme Rules and officially on the way to Summerslam, meaning things should be getting a lot bigger in a hurry around here. AJ Styles is still the WWE Champion and is going to be needing a new challenger. There’s a good chance that’s going to be Samoa Joe, which should be good for everyone involved. Let’s get to it.

Here are Sunday’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a look back at Shinsuke Nakamura hitting Jeff Hardy low before the bell and winning the US Title in five seconds. The rematch is tonight.

Here’s Hardy to open things up. Hardy feels incomplete because he’s no longer US Champion. This Sunday he got ahead of himself because he wanted to get his hands on Nakamura so bad. Tonight he’s getting his title back and making Nakamura fade away and classify himself as obsolete.

Nakamura says Hardy is a sad clown and tonight he’ll makes Hardy cry again. God bless America.

AJ Styles vs. Andrade Cien Almas

Non-title. Almas headlocks him to start and has AJ in some early trouble, followed by a shoulder. AJ tries to send him into the ropes but Almas does his pose in the ropes to take us to a break. Back with AJ getting dropkicked and chopped as Almas is looking rather good so far. The running knees in the corner are countered into the fireman’s carry backbreaker for AJ’s first major offense.

The Phenomenal Forearm is broken up though and AJ is right back down. Almas’ missed moonsault into a standing moonsault gets two and Zelina Vega is losing it at ringside. Back to back Peles rock Almas but he’s fine enough to block a superplex. The top rope stomp sets up the running corner knees for a very close two. Almas loads up the hammerlock DDT but gets reversed into the Calf Crusher for the tap at 11:55.

Rating: B. Almas is clearly going to be a player on the main roster, which makes the long delay in actually giving him anything all the more frustrating. He can go in the ring and Vega is perfect as a mouthpiece. This was a lot of fun and I could see Almas getting a big match at Summerslam as a result.

We look back at Aiden English pulling the turnbuckle pad off and Rusev going into it by mistake.

Aiden asks Lana to smooth things over with Rusev. She says Rusev needs his space and English is the only one who cares about an apology right now. All English wants is a second chance, which Lana will take into consideration.

Becky Lynch vs. Mandy Rose

Mandy tries to start fast but gets kicked in the ribs for her efforts. A springboard kick to the chest has her in more trouble but a second attempt is pretty easily blocked. Mandy cranks on the neck for a bit before hitting a knee to the head for two. Becky already makes a comeback with a running forearm and the Bexploder into the Disarm-Her for the tap at 3:35.

Rating: D+. Becky’s road to redemption continues as there’s nothing left for her to do other than challenge for the title. Becky is on a roll right now and this kind of a push is long overdue. You can only beat up Mandy and Sonya so many times before it stops meaning anything though and now it’s time to move up.

Post match Becky says winning feels great and it’s time to bring the straight fire at Carmella.

Carmella comes in to see Paige, who asks how Carmella’s boyfriend James Ellsworth is. After correcting Paige on that, Carmella asks about her party next week. Paige makes Carmella vs. Becky instead and if Becky wins, she gets a title shot at Summerslam.

R-Truth of all people comes up to see Tye Dillinger. Tye is serious and doesn’t need a motivational speech. It turns out Truth is on a bluetooth and didn’t even hear Tye. I remember that joke about ten years ago so it’s perfect now.

Tye Dillinger vs. Samoa Joe

Joe jumped him before the show last week. Tye goes straight at him to start and even knocks Joe to the floor. The beating is short lived though as Joe sends him into the corner for the running enziguri. The Koquina Clutch knocks Tye out at 1:43.

Here’s the Miz to hold a funeral for HELL NO. Miz shakes some hands in condolence on the way to the ring before putting a masked Kane head on a pillow in the ring. After a quick plug for Miz and Mrs., Miz quotes N’Sync by saying it’s time for the team to go Bye Bye Bye. Miz recaps the team’s history, mainly focusing on their failures and Kane attacking Daniel Bryan over the years. We get a moment of silence before Miz says he told us so.

Kane was just a broken down demon and Bryan was never the star he claimed to be. This reunion was one last Hail Mary to recreate some of Bryan’s glory and it failed. Miz knows Bryan was never what he was cracked up to be so here’s Bryan through the crowd to go after Miz. He settles for beating up the pallbearers instead.

New Day is ready to beat up Sanity.

Eric Young vs. Kofi Kingston

Feeling out process to start with Kofi getting forearmed in the back a few times. The comeback doesn’t take long though and Young is knocked to the floor in a hurry as we take a break. Back with Young hanging him over the apron for some elbows to the back of the head. Kofi makes a quick comeback with a kick to the face and the Boom Drop but Trouble in Paradise misses.

Young heads up top so Kofi runs the corner for a belly to belly superplex. It’s time for a Sanity meeting on the floor, only to have Kofi hit a big no hands dive to take them out. Back in and the SOS gives Kofi two and it’s time to speed things up again. Another springboard misses though and Killian Dain throws Xavier Woods at Kofi, setting up the wheelbarrow neckbreaker to pin Kofi at 9:35.

Rating: C. These are two guys who can work their craft against anyone and it makes sense to have Young get his first win here. Sanity is almost the inverse New Day so you can see enough similarities to set up a good feud. It also helps that New Day is as made as you can get these days so losses like this don’t do them any harm.

We’ll find out AJ’s Summerslam opponent next week.

US Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jeff Hardy

Nakamura is defending. Hardy goes straight at him and avoids the early low blow attempt, instead dropkicking Nakamura into the corner. Back from an early break with Nakamura kicking him in the head for two and slapping on a chinlock. A front facelock has Hardy in more trouble until the sitout jawbreaker gets him out. The Russian legsweep gets two on Nakamura but he’s right back with a running knee to the head as we take a second break.

Back again with Jeff hitting Whisper in the Wind for two and frustration setting in. Jeff’s spinning kick to the chest sends Nakamura into the corner but he kicks Jeff in the face. The running knee in the corner gets two on Jeff and a one kneed Backstabber is good for the same. Kinshasa is blocked by the swinging sleeper drop but Nakamura is ready for the Swanton. Another Kinshasa is countered into the Twisting Stunner though and now the Swanton connects, only to have Randy Orton pull Hardy out for the DQ at 19:12.

Rating: B-. I might as well have had the finish written down a good three minutes before the match ended. It’s nice that they got to have the longer match and hopefully Jeff gets some time off instead of setting up some triple threat match at the pay per view. Orton vs. Hardy doesn’t do much for me but adding Nakamura into the feud to make it for the title would probably make the most sense.

Post match Orton destroys Hardy by sending him into the steps over and over. Just to go especially insane, Orton sticks his finger through the gauge piercing in Hardy’s ear and pulls at it, making a lot of people cringe. The hanging DDT off the announcers’ table ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. They’re certainly in Summerslam mode now and that’s a good thing after a pretty lackluster build towards Extreme Rules. The ending was good and made Orton look like a psycho again, but Hardy sticking around when he’s very banged up isn’t the best idea in the world. AJ’s opponent being revealed should make for some interesting TV next week, giving us a rare instance of something I want to see being announced early. Good show here as they start setting up the Summerslam pieces.

Results

AJ Styles b. Andrade Cien Almas – Calf Crusher

Becky Lynch b. Mandy Rose – Disarm-Her

Samoa Joe b. Tye Dillinger – Koquina Clutch

Eric Young b. Kofi Kingston – Wheelbarrow neckbreaker

Jeff Hardy b. Shinsuke Nakamura via DQ when Randy Orton interfered

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

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

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

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

Extreme Rules 2018
Date: July 15, 2018
Location: PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Michael Cole, Jonathan Coachman

It’s the extreme pay per view that forgot its extreme. Tonight’s show features ten matches and only a handful have any kind of gimmick attached, including the likely main event of the completely standard Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley. WWE hasn’t done much to make the show feel special but maybe they’ll surprise me. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Sin Cara vs. Andrade Cien Almas

Rematch from Smackdown. Cara starts fast with a headscissors to send Almas outside but the suicide dive reinjures the elbow that kept Almas out for about a month. An elbow to the face puts Cara on the floor again and we get the double pose in the ropes/on the apron from Almas and Zelina Vega. Back from a break with Cara fighting out of an armbar and grabbing a hurricanrana out of the corner. Cara shoves him off the top and hits a frog splash but Vega offers a distraction. Back up and Almas hits a charge in the corner, setting up the running knees. The hammerlock DDT finishes Cara at 7:00.

Rating: C+. Nice cruiserweight style match here with the right ending, though they covered this already on Smackdown. I’m rarely a fan of having a match added to a card for the sake of having a match added to a card and that feels like what we got here. Almas needs to move up to something bigger now though as he has the complete package to really make a run up the ladder.

Kickoff Show: New Day vs. Sanity

Tables match. New Day clears the ring just after the bell and it’s already time to look for a table. Big E. gets double teamed inside until Young hits Wolfe by mistake. The spear through the ropes is broken up and Young drops the top rope elbow. Back from a break with Big E. still getting double teamed until Woods and Kofi send Wolfe and Young to the floor. Stereo suicide dives take them out but Killian Dain hits a dive of his own to crush them against the barricade.

Two more tables are set up on the floor and one is stacked upside down on top of another. Woods and Big E. fight their way out though and it’s a modified Tower of Doom with Kofi hitting a top rope double stomp instead of getting superplexed. Dain comes back in to flatten Woods and Big E. until Trouble in Paradise puts him back on the floor. Kofi and Wolfe fight on the apron above a table until Young comes off the top to drive Kofi through for the win at 7:36.

Rating: C. They moved a lot out there and it was entertaining while it lasted but that wasn’t exactly very long. Much like the other match, the right person won without much trouble, though at least this one was over some more successful opponents. I’m not sure where Sanity goes from here but they’re the kind of act that can go up against anyone and be tailored to make it work.

The opening video looks at a little bit of everything tonight, almost none of which feels like an important match in the slightest.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Matt Hardy/Bray Wyatt vs. B Team

The B Team is challenging. Matt takes Dallas down to start with his zany screaming offense and Bo is already rolling to the floor. Back in and it’s off to Bray for the showdown with Dallas, who immediately tags instead. Bray has no problem pounding Axel down and Matt comes back in for his ten rams into the buckle. Matt gets two off a clothesline but runs into a boot to give the B Team their first opening. It also gives us our first dueling chant of the evening as the fans are split on the challengers.

Dallas whips Hardy into a DDT for two and it’s off to a neck crank. The comeback doesn’t take long and it’s Wyatt coming in to clean house. The release Rock Bottom plants Dallas but Axel breaks up the Kiss of Deletion. Dallas sends the champs together and the hanging swinging neckbreaker is enough to pin Hardy for the titles at 7:58.

Rating: D+. The ending is probably the right call as somehow the comedy team is the best thing that we can get for the titles instead of someone like Revival, who have already shown that they can wrestle a great match against a variety of teams. I’m sure someone finds them hilarious (and they are funny) but my goodness what happened to Hardy and Wyatt? They were a big deal just a few weeks ago and now they’re jobbing clean in an opening match.

The B Team compares this to Stretch Armstrong landing on the moon. Ok maybe I do like these two a bit more.

General Manager Kurt Angle is in the back and talks about how tired he is of Brock Lesnar refusing to defend the title. Therefore, Lesnar needs to show up tomorrow night to set up his next title defense or he’ll be stripped of the belt. I’m not sure what it says to think of that as a big relief.

Baron Corbin vs. Finn Balor

Another “I’m better because I’m bigger feud”. Balor starts fast but gets caught in the corner for some running clotheslines. Corbin punches him down for two and stomps on the back while making sure to mention that he’s bigger. It works so well that Corbin breaks up a springboard with another right hand for two more and it’s off to the chinlock.

Balor slugs away for a breather and kicks Corbin down but it’s way too early for the Coup de Grace. Instead it’s a chokebreaker for two and Deep Six is good for the same. A quick double stomp stuns Corbin but Balor can’t follow up. The End of Days are reversed into a small package to give Balor the fast pin at 8:20.

Rating: D. There was no need for this to be on pay per view and there was even less need for Balor to win. I like Balor, but he’s ice cold at the moment while Corbin had been getting a nice boost thanks to the Constable thing. The story was Big Cass warmed over and that’s not exactly something that was worth watching in the first place. These two didn’t have any chemistry together and there’s no reason to see it happen again.

In the back, the Bludgeon Brothers attack HELL NO with Kane taking a mallet shot to the knee.

We recap Asuka vs. Carmella. Asuka got cheated out of the title last month by the returning James Ellsworth (who just had to be cast in the role) so tonight he’s locked in a shark cage to ensure a fair fight.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Asuka vs. Carmella

Asuka is challenging and starts kicking away as soon as the shark cage goes up. Ellsworth is already dropping a chain down less than thirty seconds in but Asuka kicks it away. Carmella gets in a few shots so this time Ellsworth drops some mace. That doesn’t work either as the hip attack gets two and the Asuka Lock sends Carmella straight to the ropes.

Ellsworth manages to pick the lock but his pants get caught in the door, leaving him hanging upside down. Asuka beats on him like a punching bag and let’s stop the match so Ellsworth can be put back in the cage. Instead of letting the production people do their jobs, Asuka beats them up and leaves the cage hanging there. Carmella sneaks in, rams her into the cage, and gets the pin to retain at 5:37.

Rating: F. I don’t think this needs an explanation do you? Instead we’ll look at how fast everything is going for the sake of trying to cram all of this into the time limit, which isn’t likely to happen anyway because WWE will manage to over run anyway. This felt like a bad Smackdown angle, but at least Asuka got pinned again.

Asuka beats up Ellsworth to blow off some steam.

Quick recap of tonight’s happenings.

US Title: Jeff Hardy vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Hardy is defending and gets hit low before the bell. He says he can go so the bell rings and Kinshasa gives Nakamura the pin and the title at 5 seconds. That has to be an injury or something.

Post match Randy Orton is back….to stomp Hardy low as Nakamura is stunned.

We recap Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman. Owens tried to get everyone to go after Strowman in Money in the Bank so Strowman destroyed Owens’ car, then locked him in a portable toilet. The result: a cage match of course.

Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Pin, submission or escape. Owens bolts for the cage early on but Strowman pulls him back down. Strowman: “YOU SAY FIGHT OWENS FIGHT! FIGHT ME!” Owens slugs away and actually drops Strowman with a superkick. The frog splash gets two so Owens goes for the door, only to be pulled back in screaming for mercy. Strowman throws him into the cage a few times and stands over Owens as the fans want someone to GET THESE HANDS.

A Stunner of all things gets Owens out of trouble and back to back superkicks put Strowman down on one knee. Owens busts out some handcuffs to attach Strowman to the ropes but hammers away instead of leaving. I really don’t see this ending well. A chokeslam drops Owens again but he rolls away and mocks Strowman before going up. Strowman breaks the handcuffs and runs up the wall to catch Owens, who he chokeslams off the cage onto the announcers’ table (with the crash pad showing), giving Owens the win at 8:50.

Rating: D. Well the crash was great, but I could go for a match actually getting some time tonight. A long stretch of this was spent on the handcuffs bit and that was hardly revolutionary. I hope they don’t try to keep Strowman the face if this feud continues, but for some reason that seems to be the most likely outcome. If nothing else has made him the heel in this thing, this won’t either.

Post match Owens is taken out on a stretcher while Strowman laughs about how Owens won.

We look at the US Title match and Orton’s return.

We recap the Smackdown Tag Team Title match. Bryan annoyed the Bludgeon Brothers so they beat him down a few times. Kane made his return to help his former partner, setting up the title match here. It’s pure nostalgia but it’s been fun.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: HELL NO vs. Bludgeon Brothers

Bryan, with bad ribs, is challenging on his own as Kane is too injured to compete. The rapid fire kicks give Bryan some early hope and Rowan gets knocked outside. A hurricanrana sets up the YES Lock on Harper but Rowan makes a quick save. Rowan gets two off a running splash and rips at Bryan’s face. Harper comes back in and eats some kicks, only to have Rowan catch the Flying Goat. He can’t hold Bryan long enough though and Harper’s suicide dive hits Rowan instead.

Cue Kane with a cast on his foot to limp down the aisle and take a diving tag. A pair of weak chokeslams drop the Brothers but Harper kicks him in the leg. Bryan tags himself back in for a missile dropkick and it’s time for the YES Kicks to Harper. A blind tag brings Rowan in and he spinwheel kicks Bryan down. Rowan whips Bryan into Kane, setting up a powerbomb/top rope clothesline combination to pin Bryan at 8:18.

Rating: C. They were flying through this (just like everything else tonight) but this was actually getting somewhere with Kane’s injury being a nice little story. That being said, Kane doesn’t quite have it in the ring anymore and it’s showing more and more every time. Bryan taking a fall after coming in injured and fighting most of the match on his own doesn’t hurt anything and the Brothers shouldn’t be losing the titles yet anyway. It was short, but this was one of the best things on the show so far.

Roman Reigns is walking in the back when he runs into the still celebrating B Team. He can be part of the team tonight if he Beats Lashley and they can all celebrate together. Roman walks away and the booing intensifies.

We recap Reigns vs. Lashley (which actually isn’t main eventing). It was about the #1 contendership but Lesnar wasn’t feeling that so it became the two bickering about who should fight Lesnar. Reigns called Lashley out for leaving and Lashley bragged about being awesome. They had a huge brawl on Raw which went very well but other than that, it feels like two kids arguing about beating up the bigger kid who would probably flatten them.

Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley

Reigns powers him into the corner to start and shrugs off the first suplex. The apron dropkick sets up an early chinlock as they’re going fast but not really at a high pace if that makes sense. Reigns takes it outside again and they fight over the steps with Lashley (minus the headband) getting the better of it.

Back in and the fans call this boring as Lashley hits a belly to belly suplex but charges into a boot in the corner. Reigns is favoring his ribs as he hits the corner clotheslines so Lashley grabs a powerslam to hurt the ribs even worse. An ax handle from the top puts Reigns down again but he’s back up with something like an AA to put Lashley on the floor in a big crash. Back in and a legdrop gives Reigns two, followed by Lashley’s vertical suplex for the same.

Lashley’s spear is cut off by a Superman Punch, sending him rolling to the floor. Reigns tries a charge but gets caught in a belly to belly onto (not through) the announcers’ table. That doesn’t have much of an effect though as he Superman Punches Lashley off the top. The spear is loaded up but Lashley spears him down instead for the pin at 14:54.

Rating: C+. Well that’s certainly a thing that happened. Lashley winning was the only logical call as he needed something to energize his return, especially after that horrible Sami Zayn feud. I still expect the possibility of Reigns getting to beat Lesnar somehow, but at least they gave Lashley the win he needed here.

We recap Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss. Jax was defending against Ronda Rousey at Money in the Bank when Bliss cashed in her briefcase. Rousey snapped and attacked Bliss, earning herself a suspension. Therefore, tonight Rousey is in the front row instead of being in the ring but it might not matter as Bliss is defending in an Extreme Rules match.

Raw Women’s Title: Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss

Bliss is defending, anything goes, and Natalya and Mickie James are the seconds. Nia goes into stalking mode to start so it’s time for weapons, all of which Nia throws away without much effort. Bliss’ chair is pulled out of her hands and a gorilla press drop puts her onto a trashcan. Some trashcan shots have Nia down and Bliss wedges a chair in the corner.

Mickie and Natalya get in a fight on the floor with Bliss heading outside to send Natalya into the barricade. Rousey jumps the barricade and sends Mickie inside for a twisting Samoan drop (not bad). James gets sent over the announcers’ table and Rousey runs Bliss down but James is back up with a kendo stick. Back in and James hits Jax in the back to break up a Samoan drop. Bliss chairs Nia down and DDTs her on the chair to retain at 7:21.

Rating: D. This show is feeling more and more like a Vince Russo show every match. They flew through this again and the Rousey stuff was the focus (as it should have been) but it felt like it could have been a big TV angle instead of a pay per view match. It was as much as you were going to get out of hitting each other with weapons for a few minutes until the angle started and that’s all you really could have expected here.

Rousey chases Bliss and James off.

We recap AJ Styles vs. Rusev because the Intercontinental Title match really is main eventing. Rusev Day has become one of the hottest things in the company but Styles is still the Phenomenal One. It’s Rusev’s first ever singles match for the title and he’s ready to make the most of it.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Rusev

Rusev is challenging and has Aiden English singing him to the ring. AJ starts fast with some kicks to the leg but gets kneed in the ribs to cut him off. A backdrop puts him down and a belly to back suplex works on the ribs a bit more to start the setup for the Accolade. We hit the bearhug for a few moments until Rusev puts him on top. You don’t do that to AJ though as he slips between Rusev’s legs and kicks him to the floor with Rusev holding his leg.

Back in and a running seated forearm has Rusev in trouble, followed by a reverse DDT for two. AJ gets sent to the apron but doesn’t seem to mind as he snaps off a kick to the head. The springboard 450 misses and neither submission hold can go on. Instead AJ kicks him down but the running forearm is countered by a kick to the head from the mat (that’s kind of impressive).

A belly to belly on the floor sets up the Machka Kick for two and the roundhouse kick to the head gets the same. Rusev loads up the Accolade but the leg gives out from earlier. The one legged version of the Accolade doesn’t work very well so Aiden English rips off a turnbuckle pad. AJ slips out of another Accolade attempt and Rusev charges into the buckle. The springboard 450 gets two so Styles decks English and hits the Phenomenal Forearm to retain at 15:35.

Rating: B. Easily the best thing on the show so far, mainly because they didn’t rush through the thing. Rusev gets to save a little bit of face thanks to the messy ending too and that’s a good sign for his future. AJ wasn’t really in a lot of danger here and now he can move on to the biggest threat of all, which should be Samoa Joe.

Seth Rollins is ready to burn it down and get his Intercontinental Title back.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Thirty minute Iron Man match with Ziggler defending and Drew McIntyre in his corner. Feeling out process start with Rollins taking it to the mat and working on a hammerlock. That goes nowhere so Rollins tries a rollup for two instead. Ziggler takes him to the mat as well but Rollins pops back up with a Buckle Bomb. La majistral gives Rollins the first fall at 4:35.

1-0 Rollins

Rollins hits a slingshot dive to the floor as Coach talks about John Cena and Shawn Michaels having an Iron Man match (wrong). The fans have a new annoying idea: counting down the time like the Royal Rumble clock, but on every minute. Back in and Ziggler hits an elbow but Rollins slips out of a suplex, setting up Stomp for the second fall at 7:57.

2-0 Rollins

Ziggler is rocked so McIntyre comes in to jump Rollins for the DQ at 8:45.

3-0 Rollins

McIntyre beats on him even more and gets ejected but there’s no second DQ, not even after a Claymore to Rollins as we hit ten minutes. Ziggler covers to get a fall back at 10:28.

3-1 Rollins

A superkick gives Ziggler another fall at 11:09.

3-2 Rollins

The fans aren’t happy that the clock has been taken off the Titantron (I’ll be happy for them) so Ziggler hits a Zig Zag to tie things up at 12:09, hopefully getting their attention back.

3-3 Tied

We get a WHERE’S THE CLOCK chant because fans don’t understand the concept of having something taken away from you if you abuse it. Therefore, they just start randomly counting down, even if it doesn’t match the clock on the screen. Rollins sends him outside but the suicide dive hits a forearm, allowing Ziggler to get a rollup with feet on the ropes for the pin at 14:07.

4-3 Ziggler

Ziggler grabs an armbar as we’re halfway through. With Rollins running out of time, Ziggler grabs a long sleeper with a grapevine to eat up a few minutes. Rollins fights up and sends him outside for a suicide dive and a springboard clothesline gets two as we have ten minutes left. The clock comes back on so we get a YES chant as Ziggler dropkicks Rollins off the top. Normally a big bump like that would get a reaction, but the fans were too busy counting down again.

They fight to the corner and on top until Rollins headbutts him back down. The frog splash gets two on the champ so Ziggler gets smart by grabbing the bottom rope. Rollins kicks him free and loads Ziggler up for the superplex into the Falcon Arrow for two with four minutes left. Ziggler breaks up the Stomp but gets sunset flipped to tie it up at 26:51.

4-4 Tied

Rollins wastes no time in pulling him down into a Sharpshooter and then a Crossface. With that not working, Rollins misses a Stomp and Ziggler rolls outside with a minute left. Back in and a quick Fameasser gets two to put them both down. Ziggler tunes up the band but walks into a superkick, setting up the Stomp but time expires on Seth at 30:10 (not sure how they messed that up) and it’s a draw.

Rating: B. REALLY annoying crowd aside (“We came up with something clever! Let’s do it thirty times in a row!”), this was a rather good match that never felt long in the slightest. I did like the idea of doing that many falls at the beginning as it gave the match a hot start and took away some of the dragging that comes with Iron Man matches. Better than I was expecting here so that’s a nice surprise.

Actually hang on a second here as Kurt Angle comes out to say we’re going to overtime.

Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

McIntyre runs in for a distraction and Ziggler hits the Zig Zag to retain at 14 seconds.

Overall Rating: D+. The last two matches came close to saving it but this was a prime example of WWE not taking the time to plan out their shows and cramming in WAY too much stuff to make them work. This show needed to have a few matches changed (drop Almas vs. Cara, move the Raw Tag Team Titles to the Kickoff Show, do the US Title match on Smackdown and cut Balor vs. Corbin) so that you don’t have to rush through everything else.

The show felt so rushed and while I REALLY appreciate them being out at a more reasonable time (show ended at 10:42), they needed to trim things down a good bit. Not everyone belongs on pay per view and that couldn’t have been more true here. I really would have been fine without some of these matches and the show would have had a lot more breathing room if they weren’t slapped on there.

As for what we did get….I’ve seen better. I know I’ve harped on this already but the lack of time for a lot of the matches really hurt things as it felt like they were flying through it instead of letting the matches go somewhere. The booking wasn’t exactly great either with Strowman looking like a jerk, Asuka failing again and the Intercontinental Title closing a show because…I have no idea. I didn’t know Iron Man matches were extreme, but the only extreme thing here was the extremely annoying crowd in the main event.

Lesnar and the title being back will help a lot though as we now have a target for Summerslam. It’s not the worst show in the world, but they would have been in some serious trouble had the last few matches not completely bailed them out. Just cut down on some of this stuff and it would be a lot better.

Results

B Team b. Matt Hardy/Bray Wyatt – Hanging swinging neckbreaker to Hardy

Finn Balor b. Baron Corbin – Small package

Carmella b. Asuka – Carmella rammed her into the cage

Shinsuke Nakamura b. Jeff Hardy – Kinshasa

Kevin Owens b. Braun Strowman – Owens escaped the cage

Bludgeon Brothers b. HELL NO – Powerbomb/Top rope clothesline combination to Bryan

Bobby Lashley b. Roman Reigns – Spear

AJ Styles b. Rusev – Phenomenal Forearm

Dolph Ziggler b. Seth Rollins 5-4

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

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

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

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

It’s another pay per view and WWE isn’t exactly hiding the fact that this is just a pit stop on the way to Summerslam….whatever that’s going to be. The show isn’t exactly extreme with a cage match, an Extreme Rules match and an Iron Man match. It’s also a ten match card (plus two matches on the Kickoff Show, because this needed two matches on the Kickoff Show), one of which is guaranteed to go thirty minutes, that they claim will be ending at 10:30pm. Last time that meant 11:20 so maybe they can make it even later this time. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Sanity vs. New Day

This is a tables match for the sake of trying to make the show live up to its name. Ignore the fact that this isn’t actually on the show of course. Sanity was called up back in April but didn’t debut until June because….uh, reasons. New Day makes perfect sense for a first feud so this is as good about as good as things are going to be at the moment. That being said, Sanity has looked good so far so maybe there’s some hope.

I’ll take Sanity to win here as there’s no reason for them to lose. New Day has nothing to gain by winning here and Sanity has yet to actually win a big match. The violence would seem to suit Sanity quite well and a win over one of the best trios ever would do them some good. Killian Dain gets to look like a monster and overpower Big E. while Eric Young probably gets the win. That’s how it should go and New Day will put in a good performance in the process.

Kickoff Show: Andrade Cien Almas vs. Sin Cara

Here’s another match on the Kickoff Show which was added for the sake of adding something else. They already did the match on Tuesday and while it seemed quite good, a lot of it took place during the commercial. I’m not sure why they felt the need to cram something else in but that’s the way WWE tends to go.

Of course I’ll take Almas to win here because even WWE isn’t crazy enough to have him lose to someone as low level as Cara. Almas could become a top star in a very short amount of time around here and having him lose to Cara would be one of the dumbest things that WWE could do to him. If the match is as good as the one on Tuesday was though, we’ll be fine.

US Title: Jeff Hardy(c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

This was supposed to happen a few weeks ago but Nakamura was bitten by a police dog (wrestling writers wish they could come up with something that out of nowhere) and the match had to be postponed. Hardy has been champion for about three months now and all of his injuries have really held his reign back. What could have been a stepping stone to the main event has been every lame midcard title reign all over again.

Nakamura winning the title here is really the only result that makes sense here and somehow, despite being in the World Title match at WrestleMania earlier in the year, he kind of needs it. Hardy has shown that he can bounce back almost immediately from any loss but Nakamura has won a grand total of one important match (when he beat AJ Styles, allowing him to pick the stipulation for the next match, which he also lost) in the last few months. Give him the title and let people chase him for a few months.

SmackDown Women’s Title: Carmella(c) vs. Asuka

Speaking of people who have fallen through the floor since WrestleMania, we have Asuka, who went from someone who was being talked about as a big time Ronda Rousey opponent to….this. Earlier this week I was worried that they might have James Ellsworth go over her and had to be relieved when he tapped. Carmella is getting better as a character, but when you go from Charlotte vs. Asuka to her very tired act with Ellsworth, it’s a bit of a drop.

I’ll go with Carmella retaining here, likely through some major shenanigans. Asuka can go off to beat up the Iconics again and either Becky Lynch or Charlotte can come up to challenge for the title. I’m really not feeling Carmella as champion long term and she needs to lose the title, but that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.

Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens

This was put inside a cage as Owens kept running away from Strowman and maybe because there was only one match involving anything EXTREME on the EXTREME Rules card. Strowman has had it in for Owens since Owens tried to get everyone against Strowman during Money in the Bank. For some reason this has sent Strowman over the edge, to the point where he’s destroyed Owens’ car and knocked him off the stage in a portable toilet. And we’re supposed to cheer for him.

I know the logical answer here would be to have Strowman wreck Owens all over again, but I can’t shake the feeling that WWE would rather have Strowman destroy him until Owens finds a way to sneak out so Strowman loses by slipping on a banana peel. For some reason they love the idea of having Mr. Money in the Bank lose before cashing in, which seems to be destined for Summerslam next month. I have a feeling I’m wrong but I’ll take Strowman with what should be the logical ending.

SmackDown Tag Team Titles: Bludgeon Brothers(c) vs. Team HELL NO

Here’s the real SmackDown main event, which does suggest that WWE sees something more in Daniel Bryan’s future than him just leaving in September. The reunion with Kane has been some very good television (I can always go for N’Sync lyrics) and if they can back it up in the ring to any degree, there’s some money to be made there.

That being said, I have no reason to believe that the titles are going to change here so we’ll go with the Brothers retaining. There’s a good chance that Kane turns on Bryan for trying to make him into less of a monster and not doing things the way Kane wants to, setting up a match at Summerslam. With Kane having his election coming up next month, putting the titles on Kane and Bryan would be rather dumb, even more so with the Brothers being a strong monster team. No change here, but I don’t think Kane turns on Bryan just yet.

Raw Women’s Title: Alexa Bliss(c) vs. Nia Jax

This is the show’s namesake match, likely taking place for the sake of trying to make this match feel more interesting than the first two times they did it earlier in the year. The personal issues have long since been settled, leaving Ronda Rousey being at ringside as the lone point of interest. That being said, WWE managed to cool her off after her great performance when she snapped, so I have little faith that they’ll get this right either.

I’ll go with Bliss retaining here as there’s no one not named Ember Moon around to challenge Jax for the title at Summerslam. Just let Rousey get involved somehow to set up Bliss’ complete and utter destruction next month. This isn’t exactly a thrilling story in the first place though as their regular matches weren’t great and Rousey is the real focal point, even though there’s little reason to believe that she’ll even be on the upcoming episodes of Monday Night Raw. Bliss retains, in the only logical conclusion they have.

Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin

The fact that I can barely remember that this match is taking place tells you almost everything you need to know. I don’t really understand why they’re fighting in the first place but I have a feeling it has something to do with either something Stephanie McMahon wants or something unfunny that Balor said to set up a match for the sake of getting the two of them on the show.

Corbin wins here as he’s been built up far better over the last few weeks, but more importantly because Balor is ice cold right now. He has nothing going on at the moment and while Corbin isn’t very far ahead of him, at least he has a character with something to do. Just get this in and out because it’s a story that isn’t drawing any interest and really doesn’t need to be on the show.

Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler(c) vs. Seth Rollins

This is the thirty minute Iron Man match, which was the long gimmick the show had on the card for a good while. We’ve already seen these two fight for about thirty minutes on Monday Night Raw a few weeks ago and the match wasn’t terrible, though I have little confidence in Ziggler being able to pull off another very good match.

I’m expecting a draw here actually, probably setting up WWE’s favorite blowoff match between smaller guys: the ladder match at Summerslam. Drew McIntyre can interfere a bit here and keep things even as Rollins would win on his own, so at least the guy who should have the title in the first place can be involved. The match should be fun, though it has the same issue that all Iron Man matches will have: you can skip the first twenty seven minutes or so and still get the important stuff. But hey, anything to fill in time.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Matt Hardy/Bray Wyatt(c) vs. B Team

Hardy and Wyatt had some potential a few months ago but my goodness it’s gone sailing out the window. This entire feud is built around the B Team parodying the champions week after week, making them more entertaining than the easy to mock champions. The B Team is just a comedy pairing and while they’re doing fine, it’s rather pathetic to see that they’re the best challengers WWE can come up with for these lame champions.

I’ll go with the champs to retain here while hoping to hear SAY YEAH as soon as they come to the ring the next night on Monday Night Raw. This should have been on the Kickoff Show for all the interest it has and while the B Team is funny, I can’t imagine them actually getting the titles. Go with what works (at least better than the other option) and keep the titles on Hardy and Wyatt until the Revival can take the titles they should have taken about a year ago.

SmackDown World Title: AJ Styles(c) vs. Rusev

I’ll spare you my well covered rant about how this should close the show because even I’m tired of hearing how stupid it is for the SmackDown World Title to be treated so badly. Rusev is finally getting some form of a reward after months of being one of the hottest things in the company, but at least Jinder Mahal got to pin him at WrestleMania. This is long overdue and somehow Rusev’s first ever one on one shot at the World Title.

Of course I’m going with Styles to retain here as Rusev is more of a Monster of the Month than anything else. Rusev can get a lot out of a match with Styles before moving on to something else, though I’m hoping he’ll be back to the main event scene (or two matches from the main event because the Tag Team Title match is SmackDown’s real main event) one day. Styles retains here and hopefully moves on to a showdown with Samoa Joe at Summerslam.

Bobby Lashley vs. Roman Reigns

That’s right. This is your main event. The match with nothing on the line and with no gimmick attached other than IT’S ROMAN FREAKING REIGNS. There’s a good chance that this is going to be the de facto #1 contender match because….well it’s a Reigns match….but naturally we can’t do that for the sake of making fans boo Brock Lesnar, which has worked so well before.

In something I’m going to regret, I’ll take Lashley to win here because he needs a major victory. That feud with Sami Zayn left a very bad taste in fans’ mouths so it would be rather beneficial to give him a win and a potential title shot at one of the biggest shows of the year. There’s no reason whatsoever to have Reigns win so you can probably pencil him in. I’ll take Lashley to win though and hope that WWE isn’t as stupid as they come off at times.

Overall Thoughts

Is it any real shock that this week’s Monday Night Raw audience was so absolutely terrible? Consider what we have on the red side: a match which will close the show that is built around a kind of personal issue but certainly not for the title shot because the champion has already said that neither of them are worthy of a shot. That’s the big deal around here and that’s supposed to be the big attraction. Oh and it’s a regular match of course because we can’t bother living up to the show’s title. This is one of the laziest builds I’ve ever seen and I can only hope that Summerslam is better. For some reason though, my hopes aren’t up.

 

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

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

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

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