Takeover: Dallas
Date: April 1, 2016
Location: Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, Dallas, Texas
Attendance: 9,000
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves

This was the start of a huge weekend for WWE and we might be kicking things off with the best show of 2016. Takeover quickly became one of the coolest shows in wrestling and this might be the best of them all. This one is going to be all about the wrestling and that means the matches and stories are going to be able to speak for themselves. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at the history of Texas wrestling, including the Freebirds, Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin among many others. Naturally the last shot is of the Von Erichs, which is all it could have ended on. I love it when they put a theme to this show and talk about a major thing to make the show feel unique. It’s a nice touch and so much better than Backlash, No Mercy or Fastlane. This turns into a video on the major matches, which is rather odd when there are only five on the card.

One heck of an NXT chant gets us going.

Tag Team Titles: American Alpha vs. Revival

Revival is defending and this is one heck of a way to start off a show. Basically Revival feels like the flavor of the month (how wrong that wound up being) and Alpha basically looks like the most amazing team ever (pretty close, at least in NXT) so it’s time for a big old showdown. Gable and Dawson start things off and the fans chant for Gable in tune to Kurt Angle’s old music.

Scott takes him into the corner and slaps Gable in the face before hugging Dawson. Fans: “WHICH ONE’S DAWSON, WHICH ONE’S DASH???” I liked that one and to be fair I had to explain it to my wife at the show anyway. The fact that she doesn’t watch NXT has nothing to do with this whatsoever. Chad slaps Dawson and it’s a big standoff with the partners coming in as well. Things settle back down with Chad armdragging and headscissoring Dawson with ease. Jason comes in for that gorgeous dropkick of his and Gable gets two off a spinning middle rope crossbody.

Chad misses a dropkick but Jason is right there to save his partner from a double suplex. Stereo German suplexes send Dawson and Wilder to the floor as Alpha stands tall in the ring. Gable makes the mistake of going after him though and Wilder scores with one heck of a clothesline to really take over. It’s off to a Gory Special of all things but Gable uses some very impressive strength to counter into a sunset flip for two. A double DDT is enough to drop the champs, only to have Dash crawl underneath the ring to pull Jordan off.

Back in and a powerbomb/top rope clothesline combo is botched, making it into something more like a Dominator and drawing a BOTCHAMANIA chant. I rip on other crowds for stupid chants like that and NXT is no better: you hardly ever see a major botch in NXT so lay off of them. Dawson breaks up ANOTHER hot tag attempt but Gable crawls through his legs for the red hot tag so house can be cleaned. Jordan starts throwing suplexes and takes down the straps for the shoulders in the corner.

Dash saves Dawson from a belly to belly superplex and even holds Dawson’s leg on a near fall. Back up and Jordan gets kicked into an uppercut for the VERY hot false finish with Chad making the save. Jordan misses a shoulder in the corner but Chad tags himself in for two off a victory roll. Three more cradles get three more two counts on Dawson before Jordan makes his own blind tag. With Dash on the floor, Jordan runs around the ring to grab Dawson for Grand Amplitude, the pin and the titles at 15:11.

Rating: A. Just outstanding stuff here and it’s easy to see why this was a Match of the Year candidate. The Revival is just so incredibly smooth out there and new champs work like a well oiled machine as well. There’s a reason this was the hottest division in wrestling for a good while and these four guys just put on a classic to open this show.

Jim Ross and Michelle Beadle are here. This got a HUGE pop live.

Kota Ibushi is here too and the fans chant his name.

Asuka worked on her striking while Bayley hugged a fan.

We recap Baron Corbin vs. Austin Aries. Corbin was in the hunt to become #1 contender but tapped out to a double submission. That got rid of him entirely so he attacked Aries, NXT’s latest signing.

Austin Aries vs. Baron Corbin

It’s almost weird to see Aries come to the ring in NXT as he didn’t wrestle down there very long. The fans are split as Aries hammers away and takes out Corbin’s knee. A discus forearm puts Corbin on the floor for a top rope dive as we hear about Aries ending Samoa Joe’s (not named of course) ROH World Title reign. Back in and it’s Aries going shoulder first into the post as the slower pace starts to creep out.

We hit the nerve hold as Corbin makes sure to get in some good old fashioned trash talk. Aries makes his comeback with some chops and hard forearms to the jaw. A neckbreaker over the ropes sets up a missile dropkick to send Corbin outside. That doesn’t work either though as Aries scores with a suicide dive, only to get caught in the Deep Six on the floor. Austin just barely beats the count at nine and tells Corbin to bring it. Corbin loads up End of Days but Aries reverses into a rollup for the pin at 10:33.

Rating: B-. If that’s the worst match of the night, this is going to be one of the best shows in a very long time. Aries just kept coming at the much bigger Corbin and eventually caught him in a rollup for the pin like a smart wrestler should do. There’s something about Aries where he fights like someone a foot taller and 100lbs heavier, which makes him a very dangerous man. This would seem to set up a rematch but it wasn’t to be as Corbin made his main roster debut two days later.

We recap Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn. Basically it was clear that Zayn was about to head to the main roster full time and he needed a major opponent for his farewell match. That would be Nakamura, who was one of the biggest signings in company history. This is the match designed to steal the show and pretty much everyone knows it’s going to be amazing.

Scott Hall and X-Pac are here.

Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

The roof nearly comes off for Sami’s entrance but Nakamura’s blows the roof all the way to Japan. Nakamura gets a LONG entrance too and you can just feel this is something special. The dueling chants begin immediately and the fans sound entirely split on this one. They stare each other down and it’s off to a YES chant. Nakamura ducks a lockup attempt and there’s no contact for the first minute.

Sami gets taken down but dodges some of the very hard looking kicks and it’s a BOTH THESE GUYS chant. They trade wristlocks until Sami gets in his three armdrags and tells Nakamura to bring it. It’s time for the kicks and knees though, meaning Sami is already checking his teeth. Nakamura loads up the boot in the corner but Sami grabs the foot and moves him away. I guess you could say he’s picking up Good Vibrations.

An enziguri staggers Sami but he’s still able to forearm Nakamura to the floor. Nakamura knees him in the head though and now Good Vibrations connects. Sami flips out of the reverse exploder though and low bridges Nakamura to the floor, setting up the big flip dive. A high crossbody gets a very hot near fall but Nakamura just knees the heck out of Sami.

That earns him a Michinoku Driver though, with Nakamura nearly landing square on his head. Both guys are slow to get up and we get the dramatic forearm exchange with the fans getting more and more into it every time. The pace picks up until neither can throw for a bit, only to have them pick up the pace all over again. They’re still going over a minute later (that’s nuts) and it’s a round of applause from the crowd while they’re still hammering each other in the head.

Nakamura finally gets the better of it and knocks Zayn into the ropes where it’s a bunch of knees and kicks to the head. The fans start a KING OF STRONG STYLE chant as the referee cleans up Nakamura’s bloody nose. Sami gets back up though and takes Nakamura’s head off with a clothesline as you can see the fire in his eyes. Nakamura can’t get a cross armbreaker but he can get a triangle choke until Sami KICKS HIM IN THE HEAD over and over for the break.

Now it’s Nakamura taking cover in the ropes while Sami just unloads on him. Sami gets the Koji Clutch on in the middle of the ring but Nakamura escapes again and scores with a big kick. That puts both guys down and it’s a FIGHT FOREVER chant. The Helluva Kick misses but Sami reverses Kinshasa into the Blue Thunder Bomb for one of the hottest near falls you’ll ever see. When that move finally wins a match, the building is going to explode.

Nakamura rolls outside but he’s still able to block the diving DDT with a huge kick to the head. Sami is in BIG trouble so of course he’s back up and trying the exploder into the corner. Even more hard, hard strikes to the head break it up though and a running knee to the head knocks Sami silly. Kinshasa connects to give Nakamura the pin and the match of the year at 20:08.

Rating: A+. I’ve seen this match a handful of times now and I think I cringe a bit more every single time. These guys were beating the heck out of each other for twenty minutes and Sami just couldn’t hang with the King at his own game. It’s very much a passing of the torch moment as Sami had long since been the heart and soul of NXT but it was time for him to move up to the next level. Nakamura looks like a monster out there and it’s easy to see why he was NXT Champion just a few months later. Outstanding stuff here and still easily the most amazing match I’ve ever seen in person.

Post match Nakamura helps Sami to his feet for an embrace. Sami holds up Nakamura’s hand and Shinsuke leaves him alone for the big farewell. That was an incredible moment and Sami had earned every single bit of it.

We recap Bayley vs. Asuka. Bayley has been the face of the women’s division for so long now and is the last of the Four Horsewomen left standing in NXT. Then comes Asuka, who much like Nakamura is just on a whole other level and has run through the entire division. One of my favorite lines on Asuka here is from Dana Brooke: “Look what I tried to do to her.” Clip of Dana slapping Asuka in the face and getting her head kicked in. Dana: “Didn’t work.” There are definite Vader/Great Muta vs. Sting vibes here and it’s a story that is always going to work.

Stephanie McMahon is here and of course she’s booed out of the building.

Women’s Title: Bayley vs. Asuka

Asuka is challenging and walks through a shower of cherry blossoms (which you could see being poured from boxes by two people in the rafters) on her way to the ring. On the other hand, Bayley gets one heck of a superstar pop. I’ve said this many times before but I continue to be in awe of her level of overness down in NXT. We get our first Big Match Intros of the night and it’s time to go.

The fans start that rather annoying Will You Be My Girl song as Bayley has to avoid the first kick. It’s off to dueling ASUKA’S GONNA KILL YOU/BAYLEY’S GONNA HUG YOU chants as Bayley grabs an armbar. They both miss their sliding strikes and it’s an early standoff with Asuka looking a bit shaken for the first time. The first hip attack sends Bayley to the apron but Asuka misses a second and gets elbowed in the jaw.

Now it’s a series of elbows to rock Asuka until she catches Bayley in a Fujiwara armbar. That’s fine with Bayley who takes her into the corner for another elbow and a near fall. A top rope hurricanrana gives Bayley the same and it’s off to the guillotine choke that she used on Nia Jax. Notice that Bayley is trying everything that’s worked in the past, which makes perfect sense. She’s overcome the odds before so why not do the same thing?

Asuka reverses into an ankle lock though and now it’s Bayley’s turn to scream. That goes nowhere so Asuka starts unloading on her and you can see Bayley’s legs starting to shake a bit (literally and figuratively). Bayley gets in a suplex but a shot to the head puts her down again. They slug it out and Bayley looks to be in over her head until she reverses a big kick into a kneebar. The knee is sent into the mat and Bayley starts in on the OTHER knee which is a fairly unique strategy.

Asuka quickly reverses into a cross armbreaker but Bayley is too close to the ropes. The champ comes back and cranks on Asuka’s arm ala the final fall against Sasha Banks in the Iron Man match. The Bayley to Belly doesn’t work and Asuka snaps her over with a suplex into another armbar. That’s switched over to the Asuka Lock with a bodyscissors and Bayley is in real trouble. Somehow Bayley gets to her feet for a bit but Asuka pulls her back down and Bayley passes out to give Asuka the title at 15:22.

Rating: B+. This one was more about telling a story, which you don’t get enough of in wrestling. The idea here was Bayley doing every old move she had used before but not being able to get by the buzzsaw that was Asuka. It was a good way of showing that as good as Bayley is, Asuka is just that much better because she’s the new generation and the future of the division. It’s another passing of the torch moment and Asuka would hold the title for a very long time to come.

Asuka poses with the title as Bayley can barely move. There’s no helping hand this time though and Asuka just leaves.

We recap Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe. These two had a war in London with Balor barely surviving and having one heck of a headache as a result. Joe won a series of matches to earn another title shot here in Dallas for a first ever rematch in a Takeover rematch. On top of that, Joe has turned into a psycho who is obsessed with winning the title.

Bobby Roode is here, drawing one heck of a gasp from the audience.

NXT Title: Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor

Balor is defending……and he’s got a chainsaw. I really don’t think that requires much more of an explanation, do you? We’re already on the dueling chants as they slug it out with Balor headbutting Joe next to the eye, busting Joe WIDE open. As in the side of his face is covered in blood less than a minute in.

Balor hits a flip dive but gets sent over the barricade as the referee tries to wipe the blood off. In a great shot, Finn raises his head over the barricade and dives onto Joe again, only to have the referee pull things off for some toweling. Joe will have none of that (big pop for that) and kicks Balor in the head, setting up a big suicide elbow. And now let’s pause again for the sake of the trainers checking on Joe. Fans: “LET THEM FIGHT!” It’s kind of a shame that they’re having to stop such a hot match but that is one heck of a cut.

Joe throws him back in but we pause again to look at the eye. It’s not like it’s a just a trickle of blood or something so this is pretty necessary. Joe cuts off the PG SUCKS chant by planting Balor with a Rock Bottom out of the corner and the fans are right back into things. Another enziguri gets two and let’s stop things AGAIN to look at the cut.

The fans have a far more adult anti-PG chant until it’s back to the action. Joe can’t get the MuscleBuster so he kicks Balor in the chest and drops a very big knee for two. Balor scores with a dropkick and let’s get that towel in there again! Fans: “LET JOE BLEED!” A bunch of chops and kicks knock Joe outside but he blocks the Sling Blade. Fans: “WE WANT TOWEL!”

Joe’s backsplash gets two and it’s the powerbomb into the Boston crab into the Crossface but Balor rolls free and scores with a double stomp. Now the MuscleBuster gets two so Balor Peles him down for a breather. Balor goes Demon though and Joe looks scared for the first time. The running dropkick sets up a Coup de Grace but 1916 is countered into the Koquina Clutch. Balor channels his inner Bret Hart though and climbs the corner into a rollup to retain at 16:22.

Rating: A. Sweet goodness this was a heck of a fight. This was all about two guys beating the heck out of each other until one of them couldn’t get up. Since neither of them had enough to truly knock the other one out (though Balor didn’t cover after the Coup de Grace), it was a counter to win as Balor completely switched directions in the end. Great match, cut issues aside. Joe would actually win the title three weeks later in a surprise at a house show before moving on to a feud with Nakamura.

Posing and highlights take us out.

Overall Rating: A+. Oh like this was getting anything else. This is one of the best shows I’ve ever seen and it ran away with Show of the Year as it should have. The worst match on the card is the totally watchable Aries vs. Corbin match, which is certainly better than your run of the mill TV match. If you somehow haven’t seen this match yet, go out of your way to check it out because it’s arguably the peak of NXT.

Ratings Comparison

American Alpha vs. Revival

Original: B+

Redo: A

Austin Aries vs. Baron Corbin

Original: C

Redo: B-

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn

Original: A+

Redo: A+

Bayley vs. Asuka

Original: B

Redo: B+

Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor

Original: A-

Redo: A

Overall Rating

Original: A

Redo: A+

It says a lot when I gave a show an A and still feel like that’s criminally underrating the thing.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2016/04/05/nxt-takeover-dallas-night-of-a-thousand-chants/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: March 21, 2017
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Connecticut
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, David Otunga, Tom Phillips

We’ve got two shows left before Wrestlemania XXXIII and it’s not likely that any brand new ideas are going to be added to the card. Odds are we’ll have Dean Ambrose vs. Baron Corbin confirmed and we’re guaranteed to see American Alpha defending the Smackdown Tag Team Titles against the Usos. Let’s get to it.

We open with a long recap of Shane McMahon vs. AJ Styles from last week, including Daniel Bryan firing AJ.

Bryan is in his office when AJ comes in. Shane isn’t here tonight but Bryan warns AJ to watch his steps. Styles says tonight, everyone is going to find out what it means to beat up Shane McMahon.

Mauro Ranallo is out sick this week. This is starting to get a bit suspicious.

Here’s AJ to the ring for a chat. It’s been seven days since he did what he did to Shane and he doesn’t feel a bit wrong about his actions. Shane’s challenge is accepted because AJ wants to be part of Wrestlemania but the question is why would Shane want to face him at Wrestlemania. As for tonight, he’s going to be waiting for Shane to arrive again and we’ll see if it’s even worse than last week.

Baron Corbin asks Bryan if Dean Ambrose has accepted his Wrestlemania challenge. Bryan hasn’t heard from Ambrose in weeks so tonight, Corbin can face Randy Orton.

Tag Team Titles: American Alpha vs. Usos

Alpha is defending after the Usos beat them last week. Jordan takes Jimmy down to the mat to start and the twins are in early trouble. A double clothesline sends both Usos outside and it’s all champions as we take a break. Back with Gable fighting out of a chinlock but getting sent chest first into the buckle ala Bret Hart.

Chad breaks away but gets sent to the floor instead making the tag. That’s good for a nine count before Gable is put in the Tree of Woe. Of course he powers up to avoid a charge and the hot tag brings in Jordan. An Angle Slam (they’re just trolling us now) gets two on Jey but Jimmy escapes the Steiner Bulldog.

Back to back superkicks puts both champs down and the Superfly Splash is good for a very near fall. Jordan breaks up another splash and Jey is superplexed down. The Steiner Bulldog is only good for two as Jimmy makes the save. I completely bought that as the finish. With the other three down on the floor, Gable moonsaults down onto everyone. Back in and Jordan gets crotched on the middle rope, allowing Jimmy to superkick him down for the pin and the titles at 12:32.

Rating: B+. This was great stuff with some really strong false finishes. They also really surprised me as I didn’t think the Usos had a chance after the Superfly Splash was only good for two. It’s not like American Alpha has done anything with the titles (not their fault) so maybe changing the belts can give them a shot in the arm for all of a few days. I just hope they don’t put the rematch on Wrestlemania because the card just does not have room for it.

AJ is waiting in the parking lot.

Luke Harper wants Bray Wyatt next week.

Miz and Maryse have a special never before seen episode of Total Bellas. It’s Maryse as both Bellas (a really, really good look for her) and of course mocking everything the two of them do. Maryse as Nikki: “Of course I’m Nikki! I’M THE ONE WITH THE HAT!” Maryse as Brie: “BRIE MODE!” Cue Miz as John Cena, who has a bunch of rules like no singing. Since Nikki has followed a rule, he’ll pop a question to her, meaning he has a big balloon labeled “the question” which he pops.

Again, I have no idea why I’m supposed to boo Miz and Maryse. If you watch the show, which is supposed to be REALITY, this is exactly what Cena and the Bellas are like. Cena is a control freak who has a ridiculous set of rules and the Bellas are two of the dumbest people who have ever lived. Why am I supposed to cheer for them?

Baron Corbin vs. Randy Orton

Corbin shoulders him down to start but gets sent into the corner for some uppercuts and right hands. A hard whip into the post keeps Orton down though and it’s off to a break. Back with Corbin sliding underneath the ropes and back in for his clothesline. Orton grabs the powerslam (that’s always good looking) but can’t hit the elevated DDT.

Instead they go outside with Orton sending him into various metal objects like a good viper is supposed to do. Now the DDT hits but of course it’s too early for the first RKO, meaning Corbin gets two off Deep Six instead. They head outside again (happening too often) and Corbin goes into the steps. Back in again and here’s Ambrose for the distraction, setting up the RKO for the pin at 12:49.

Rating: C+. Pretty good stuff here as Corbin has the size to make his offense look good against someone like Orton. There was no doubt that Orton was going over here (save for a surprise by Wyatt) because there’s no reason to have him lose so close to his biggest match of the year.

Corbin vs. Ambrose for the title is official at Wrestlemania.

Orton is in the back talking about his match when the lights start to flicker. He tells Bray to show himself but here are an army of people in sheep masks to beat Orton down. Bray appears and seems to bless Orton with a red X on the end. Wyatt kneels in front of him and says Orton changed him by exposing his one weakness. The power of Sister Abigail lives inside him forever and it’s time to sing.

Breezango vs. John Cena

Tyler Breeze is dressed as Nikki Bella, which is far too common of a thing tonight. Before the match, Fandango gives Cena fashion tickets and introduces Breeze as his muscle. This brings out the real Nikki. The bell rings and Cena does his normal stuff but here’s Breeze to the apron. Nikki comes in to spear him down and hits the Rack Attack 2.0. Stereo STF’s give us simultaneous taps at 1:29. For a Southpaw Regional Wrestling related match, I’ve seen worse.

Carmella vs. Becky Lynch

Natalya is on commentary and comes in to hit Carmella for the DQ.

Post match Mickie James and Alexa Bliss come out for the big brawl with Bliss being the last woman standing.

Time for more Total Bellas with Miz (as Cena) reading his affections for Maryse (as Nikki) off cue cards and giving her a diamond…….Dallas Page yoga set. As we see the kitchen (the TV kitchen where the unseen servants prepare food off camera so we can feel relateable to the show you see), Miz gives her a WWE ring (“It’s to scale!”). Later, in the bedroom, which is TOTALLY where Cena sleeps, Miz agrees to tie the knot. On his shoes you see. Maryse is sad to end things. These are hilarious and makes me cheer for Miz and Maryse even more.

AJ is still waiting but is disappointed when Rhyno and Heath Slater arrive. With fifteen minutes left. Why is Shane even bothering to show up at this point?

Actually never mind as Shane is in the arena, which doesn’t please AJ. Back from a break with Shane, sporting one heck of a black eye, calling AJ out. We see Styles making the long walk to the ring and he takes his time going through the curtain. AJ wants to apologize but Shane beats on him anyway. Styles suplexes him into the barricade and loads up the announcers’ table, only to have Shane hit him in the head with a monitor. Shane goes up top for the big elbow…..which MIGHT have grazed AJ’s forearm. The fans call BS on it as Shane slowly gets up to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. As is almost always the case this time of year, the wrestling wasn’t the point and if you think it was, you’re missing the point. This was all about setting up Wrestlemania (and cracking me up with the Total Bellas stuff) and they did so on a bunch of matches. The Shane elbow looked horrible but I don’t think anyone was expecting him to really be able to pull that off after last year’s performance. This show did its job, which is more important right now.

Results

Usos b. American Alpha – Superkick to Jordan

Randy Orton b. Baron Corbin – RKO

John Cena b. Fandango – STF

Carmella b. Becky Lynch via DQ when Natalya interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/01/27/kbs-reviews-now-available-in-paperback/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: March 14, 2017
Location: PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, Tom Phillips

We’ve got three Smackdowns left before Wrestlemania and now we have a #1 contender to Bray Wyatt’s Smackdown World Title. However, that means we have issues between Commissioner Shane McMahon and AJ Styles and there’s an official confrontation scheduled for tonight. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of last week’s Talking Smack with AJ Styles confronting Shane McMahon after last week’s Smackdown ended.

Daniel Bryan is on the phone with someone and runs down the show when AJ comes in. He wants Shane and threatens to slap Daniel if he says anything. Daniel suggests being calm because AJ needs to worry about his career.

Here’s AJ in the ring to complain about what happened last week. Yeah he has to jump through a bunch of hoops and he knows someone like John Cena would never have to do that. His rematch came in a triple threat match and then against five opponents in the Elimination Chamber.

After that, Styles won a battle royal (not really) and beat the other guy they said won clean in the middle of the ring to become the #1 contender. Oh wait because Randy Orton burned Bray Wyatt’s house down (Styles: “AND DIDN’T GET ARRESTED OR GO TO JAIL!”) and now he’s in the main event of Wrestlemania XXXIII. On the other hand, AJ doesn’t even have a match and he’s going to do something about it.

David Otunga is filming a movie and Mauro Ranallo is snowed in due to the blizzard in the northeast so we have a two man commentary booth tonight.

Becky Lynch vs. Natalya

Becky sends her into the corner to start and offers a handshake, earning one heck of a slap to the face. The threat of a choke sends Natalya to the floor and we take a break. Back with Natalya slamming Becky on the floor and grabbing a chinlock. Naturally that means the comeback is on with the Bexploder into the Disarm-Her for the tap out at 8:50.

Rating: C-. A good chunk of this was in the commercial so you can only get so much out of it. This is all about setting things up for the Wrestlemania match, whatever that’s going to be. I’m hoping it’s not a battle royal but a gauntlet match sounds like it’s going to eat up a lot of time. That being said, a gauntlet could be a great way to introduce someone new. Say, the Empress of Tomorrow?

Post match Carmella comes in and superkicks both of them down.

Video on John Cena hosting the Kids Choice Awards. It helps that Cena can come off like a big kid with ease so he’s kind of perfect for the role.

Post break Carmella says she’s the next champion.

It’s time for MizTV with Miz introducing himself and Maryse as the special guests. First up we see a clip of last week’s mixed tag with Cena and Nikki being taken down after their win. We also see Miz ripping into Cena on Talking Smack in another of those awesome promos that are going to be cast aside so Nikki Bella can get her marriage proposal.

Maryse tells a story about Nikki stabbing her in the back when she was going to come back to WWE and be on the first season of Total Divas. Then Nikki told her not to sign the contract because they could get a better one for more money. See, Nikki knew she could get what she wanted because she was dating Cena, meaning she was “untouchable”. The contract fell through though and only the Bellas got the big deal.

Cue Nikki and Cena to chase them off with Nikki saying Maryse wouldn’t be here if she had anything to say about it. Maryse is the one who steals money every night because she’s some brainless blowup doll. Nikki invites her into the ring for a fight but here’s Bryan to say Miz running away makes Bryan want to punch him in the face.

That makes him think of all the times Miz makes fun of him for not being able to wrestle and all the times that he (poorly) imitates Bryan’s moves and the fact that Miz knows Bryan can’t punch him in the face makes Bryan want to punch him in the face even more. However, Cena and Nikki can so the mixed tag is on at Wrestlemania.

Alexa Bliss vs. Mickie James

Non-title. They lock up hard to start before Mickie takes her into the corner for some hard stomping. Bliss sends her outside off a hard whip and we take a break. Back with Bliss holding a cravate before being sent into the corner. Alexa fights up and grabs her by the throat with some crazy looking eyes. A sunset flip gets two on Mickie but the MickDT is countered into a pinfall reversal sequence. One heck of a right hand looks to set up Insult to Injury but Mickie kicks her in the head for the pin at 8:38.

Rating: C. This was a bit better than I was expecting though as usual I can’t stand the idea of a champion getting pinned clean in non-title matches. I’m still curious to see what the gimmick is going to be because they’ve been teasing the idea that it could be something more interesting than expected. Hopefully it’s not just one big mess of a match but WWE has done worse things.

AJ is waiting in the parking lot when Shane arrives. The beating is on with Shane being beaten up against an ice machine and then going through the window of a car. Fit Finlay makes a cameo to get rid of AJ as Shane is bleeding from the top of the head.

Back from a break with a doctor checking on Shane and blood coming down his head. Shane doesn’t want to leave and has to be helped into another room.

The Usos don’t like what AJ did but AJ takes his bag to leave. Daniel stops AJ and fires him.

Mojo Rawley vs. Dolph Ziggler

They take turns throwing sweat at each other, which JBL calls one of the strangest things he’s ever seen. Ziggler is thrown over the top and out to the floor twice in a row so he tosses JBL’s hat. Back in and a dropkick gets one on Rawley but he throws Ziggler over the top for a third time. That’s enough for Ziggler and he takes the countout at 2:29.

We look at the attack on Shane again. For some reason there was a camera inside the car.

Here’s Randy Orton to discuss what happened a few weeks ago. Orton joined the Wyatt Family because he knew it was the only way to take them down. It could have been a single RKO but he wanted more. Now there’s one more step to climb though and that’s why at Wrestlemania, he’s taking everything from Wyatt.

Cue Wyatt on screen to say Orton has stripped him down to nothing. Sister Abigail still beats in his heart though and now he has no boundaries, making him all powerful. Bray reaches down and digs through the dirt, which he then rubs all over himself. He says follow the buzzards and screams before the camera cuts. So Orton threatened Wyatt and then Bray soiled himself?

We look back at Baron Corbin lowering the forklift on Dean Ambrose last week. I still love the referees trying to lift the several thousand pound fork before realizing THEY CAN JUST PUSH THE UP BUTTON.

Corbin challenges Ambrose for Wrestlemania.

American Alpha vs. Usos

Non-title. Jordan starts fast with a dropkick and grabs a front facelock on Jimmy. We cut to a split screen with Jamie Noble and Finlay helping Shane through the back and come back with the Usos going up top at the same time but the champs stare them into a standoff. Back from a break with Jordan getting kicked out to the floor so the Usos can take over.

Jimmy grabs a chinlock and it’s back to the split screen as Shane goes through the exit but turns around, seeming heading back to the ring. Jordan sends Jimmy into the corner and makes the hot tag to Gable for some house cleaning. The Steiner Bulldog is loaded up but Gable gets caught in the ropes, allowing Jey to superkick Jordan for the pin at 10:39.

Rating: C+. This was just filler until we get to the Shane stuff, which I’m sure is going to come up right after the match. I wasn’t wild on the idea of a champ losing and I’m much less into the idea of two champions losing in a single night. I really hope this isn’t added to Wrestlemania either as the card is already bloated and this really doesn’t need to be on there.

Shane stumbles out says AJ has an opponent for Wrestlemania. The show goes off the air less than five seconds later.

Overall Rating: B-. This was similar to last night’s show as they were setting up angles and pushing ones they had already established instead of focusing on wrestling. Really, with so little time left before Wrestlemania, there’s no real need to have a lot of in-ring action. One major difference here from Raw though: they did the stuff with Shane without cutting off the wrestling they had going, meaning no time is lost. Either go split screen like this or cut out some of the segments. It’s not that hard. Anyway, good show here as they’re making me want to see what they’ve got at Wrestlemania.

Results

Becky Lynch b. Natalya – Disarm-Her

Mickie James b. Alexa Bliss – Spinning kick to the head

Mojo Rawley b. Dolph Ziggler via countout

Usos b. American Alpha – Superkick to Jordan

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

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

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Smackdown
Date: February 14, 2017
Location: Honda Center, Anaheim, California
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Tom Phillips, David Otunga, John Bradshaw Layfield

There’s nothing in between us and Wrestlemania XXXIII at this point with Elimination Chamber out of the way. We still have some big TV to knock off first though and that includes one heck of a main event tonight. Bray Wyatt won the Smackdown World Title in the Elimination Chamber on Sunday but tonight he has to defend against former champion John Cena. Let’s get to it.

Long recap of Elimination Chamber kicks things off.

Here’s Bray with the title to open the show. After getting a chuckle at the YOU DESERVE IT chants, Bray says Sister Abigail told him this would never be easy. But now, after everything he’s gone through, he truly does have the whole world in his hands. Bray welcomes us to the era of Wyatt but here’s John Cena to interrupt him.

After waiting for the Roman Reigns levels of booing to cut him off, Cena congratulates Bray on becoming the new champion. John says Bray has already brainwashed the fans because they think he deserves it. Around here, you earn things instead of deserving them so now there’s a target on Bray’s shoulder. Cue AJ Styles to say that he’s already beaten Cena over and over so he wants his one on one rematch for the title right now. Bray seems willing but here’s Daniel Bryan to interrupt and make it a triple threat.

Dean Ambrose storms into the building wanting to fight Baron Corbin.

American Alpha vs. Ascension

Non-title. Gable wrestles Viktor to the mat to start and everything breaks down a few seconds later. Alpha is sent outside but come back in off the top with a double clothesline (old Steiner Brothers move) to take us to a break. Back with Gable fighting out of a chinlock, only to get kneed in the face for his efforts. There’s something to be said about getting hit square in the face to cut someone off.

Chad gets an armbar over the ropes for a breather but Viktor runs around the ring to cut of the tag. Not that it matters as Gable rolls over for the real hot tag. That means it’s time for the suplexes but Chad tags himself back in, leaving Jordan to miss a charge into the corner. Something like an H Bomb gets two on Chad but Grand Amplitude wraps up Viktor for the pin at 9:59.

Rating: C+. I liked this one more than I was expecting to as they’ve actually made Ascension feel a little more like a threat with just a few good performances. I know we’ve been told for years that wins and losses don’t matter but the last week or so is proof that just one fall can go a long way. Now of course we need some fresh talent on Smackdown and it’s WAY too late for this version of Ascension to work but it’s better than nothing.

Post match the Usos pop up on screen to say they’re coming for the belts. My goodness FIND SOME NEW CHALLENGERS. It feels like they’re the only real competition Alpha has had since they debuted.

James Ellsworth is trying to get Carmella to go to dinner when Ambrose comes in. Dean says Carmella is just using him so try online dating. Carmella tells Ellsworth to stand up for her so James kind of does so, only to have Bryan come in and grant Dean a match against Ellsworth for later tonight.

Dean Ambrose vs. James Ellsworth

And never mind as Baron Corbin drags Dean out to the stage. Deep Six into the production area gives us some sparks and Ambrose is out.

We recap Nikki Bella and Natalya fighting backstage at Elimination Chamber, including Bella being knocked into Maryse.

Nikki is in Bryan’s office with the boss saying things need to end. Natalya comes in and the arguing begins again. That quickly turns into a fight so Bryan makes it a falls count anywhere match for next week.

Baron says Dean isn’t WWE Champion because of him and now Dean is in the hospital because of him. That’s everything you need to know.

Dolph Ziggler is tired of people like Apollo Crews and Kalisto trying to take his spot. If he has to wipe out an entire generation to prove his point, so be it.

Mickie James vs. Becky Lynch

Feeling out process to start with Mickie going for the arm but getting reversed so Becky can take over on the mat. Back up and a shove puts Mickie on the floor, followed by an armbar on Mickie to copy Sunday’s tactics. They head outside again and it’s a double clothesline to take us to a break.

We come back with Mickie grabbing a chinlock before scoring with a flapjack. The Bexploder gets two on Mickie and a forearm puts her on the floor. James comes up holding her shoulder (which didn’t seem to actually hit anything in the crash) but of course she’s goldbricking, setting up a spinning kick to Becky’s jaw for the pin at 11:58.

Rating: C. The goldbricking might not be the most creative thing in the world but it does play up the idea that Mickie is a veteran who can use her experience to pull off something like that. I’m not wild on them splitting wins on back to back shows but it sets up what should be an entertaining third act.

Here’s new Women’s Champion Naomi, who says she was hurt at Elimination Chamber. It doesn’t matter though because she’s coming in to Wrestlemania with this title one way or another. Cue Alexa Bliss to say Naomi is just hiding from the pressure. Naomi could even have her own 30 for 30 special called The Lights Go Out. Bliss is feeling generous though and is giving Naomi a week to get ready for the rematch.

Black History Month video on Nelson Mandela.

TJ Perkins wants us to watch 205 Live.

Smackdown World Title: Bray Wyatt vs. John Cena vs. AJ Styles

Wyatt is defending and this is one fall to a finish. Bray does his entrance and runs into Luke Harper who gives him a pre-match beating. We take a break before the bell and come back with Cena loading up the Shuffle on Styles until Bray pulls him outside. AJ isn’t one to be shown up though and hits a big forearm out to the floor.

Back in and a low forearm gets two on Bray but Cena comes back in for the running shoulders to the champ. The AA is countered into a failed Sister Abigail attempt though as Styles comes in with the forearm. Cena plants AJ with the AA for two, followed by Sister Abigail getting the same on Cena with AJ making the save.

Back from a break with AJ slamming Bray onto the announcers’ table and dropping a leg to put him through the wood. Cena throws AJ in for another AA but tries a third and gets reversed into the Calf Crusher. That’s reversed into the STF but Bray comes back in with the backsplash for the last second save. AJ is sent outside and another AA gets two on the champ. The Styles Clash gets the same on Cena and all three are down. Back up again and AJ is sent outside, leaving Bray to grab Sister Abigail for the pin on Cena at 14:05.

Rating: B+. They were spamming the finishers like few matches you’ll see these days but at least Wyatt won in a really solid TV match. The fact that Bray pinned Cena clean with his finisher is a great sign and exactly what should have happened here. Cena isn’t losing a thing here and Wyatt gets another big fall on his resume. Well done indeed and they even managed to make me buy some of those near falls, which I really didn’t expect coming in.

Post match here’s Randy Orton for the big staredown. The fans cheer for Orton as Bray says not to listen to it. Orton says he won’t fight Bray for the title at Wrestlemania because he pledges loyalty to Wyatt. Bray says that means Orton has the keys to the kingdom and the double pose ends the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Good show here for the most part as they kept me wanting to come back next week (no not for Nikki vs. Natalya 2, which isn’t even big enough to earn Roman numerals) and gave us a hot main event. This was a big step up from Sunday and you can see a mixture of upcoming TV plus Wrestlemania plans forming. I liked the show here and that’s encouraging coming off a hot Raw.

Results

American Alpha b. Ascension – Grand Amplitude to Viktor

Mickie James b. Becky Lynch – Spinning kick to the head

Bray Wyatt b. AJ Styles and John Cena – Sister Abigail to Cena

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

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

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We’re two weeks removed from one of the biggest shows of the year and that means we’re ready for another major pay per view which will likely change the way “Wrestlemania XXXIII” looks. That’s right, it’s time for “Elimination Chamber 2017”, a “Smackdown Live” show with two matches containing eighteen wrestlers between them. It’s a rather interesting looking card so let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Mojo Rawley vs. Curt Hawkins

It’s quite the change to go from a Tag Team Title match to this in the span of two weeks. I’m not sure if this really is the best they can do but it really does show how limited the “Smackdown Live” roster is in some places. This seems more like a match that should set up a tag team later on but for now, we’ve got the two of them fighting in the battle over who was a better partner for Zack Ryder.

I’ll go with Rawley here as he seems to have the bigger upside since Hawkins’ character has died a horrible death since having an interesting debut. Rawley could be something with his ridiculous charisma but I don’t know if it’s going to be enough to carry him past the midcard. At least he’s getting a shot here but it’s going to take more than the Hammer Time dance. He’ll likely win here though.

Women’s Title: Naomi vs. Alexa Bliss

It makes sense to get some of these out of the way as there are three women’s matches on this one show. We’ll start with Bliss defending the title in a pretty thrown together match, which actually isn’t as much of a layup as it seems. I know Naomi is the athletic freak who always seems to come up just short of winning the big one but Bliss seems vulnerable enough for Naomi to finally pull it off.

That being said, I don’t think she actually does it and Bliss will retain here. Bliss has turned into one heck of a champion and there are a lot of options to take the title off of her in a really big way. Losing it to Naomi at “Elimination Chamber 2017” really isn’t all that big of a deal and I can’t imagine Naomi defending the thing at the biggest show of the year. So yeah, Bliss retains in a match that could range from highly entertaining to a horrible disaster.

Kalisto/Apollo Crews vs. Dolph Ziggler

Can someone explain this one to me without making my head hurt very badly? From what I can gather, Crews and Kalisto have beaten the heel Ziggler now but due to him attacking both of them with chairs, they now get to fight him at the same time. You know, the faces getting the advantage over the heel who is supposed to be the one getting the big push out of this.

Somehow though, Ziggler probably wins here and we completely forget about his losses because that’s how things work in WWE: nothing matters until the ending, which makes things even dumber than they were in the first place. Kalisto and Crews aren’t likely to go anywhere (aside from a big ladder match for the Intercontinental Title) and for some reason WWE still things Ziggler is going to be the big deal all these years later. At least he’ll retain his title as most overrated and uninteresting performer in WWE.

Nikki Bella vs. Natalya

Now here’s the real women’s main event because we don’t know how much longer Bella is going to be around for us to call her fearless and stand in awe of her greatness. Again I’m not sure what the story is supposed to be here as Bella has looked like an idiot for not realizing that Natalya attacked her at “Survivor Series 2016” while everyone else knew it. Then there was something about who sells the most t-shirts and a potential wedding to John Cena because EVERYTHING IS ABOUT BELLA AND CENA GETTING MARRIED ONE DAY BECAUSE….sorry this isn’t “Total Divas” so we’ll move on.

Naturally Bella wins because Natalya is just a wrestler (yeah earlier this week, Bella said Natalya is only a great wrestler. I love that we’ve somehow reached the point where “YOU’RE REALLY GOOD AT WHAT WE’RE DOING!” is the biggest insult that can be mustered and by a face no less. Bella wins of course and I continue to try to figure out what the heck she’s talking about.

Luke Harper vs. Randy Orton

In a way this is one of the more interesting matches on the card, even though there’s only one way it could possibly go. It’s kind of hard to get behind the concept of Harper having a chance here as Orton is on his way to “Wrestlemania XXXIII” but at least we could get a strong performance out of him, as Harper is so often known to deliver. The idea here of Orton taking Bray Wyatt’s attention and Harper turning on the team as a result is interesting but it’s not enough here.

So of course Orton wins and I don’t think there’s an easier match on the show to predict. Orton is on a higher level than Harper right now (and has been for his entire career of course) so there isn’t exactly a ton of doubt to this one, nor should there be. If this were at another show with Orton not coming off winning the Royal Rumble, I might be able to be tempted into an upset pick but it’s just not happening here.

Becky Lynch vs. Mickie James

We’ll wrap up the ladies’ trifecta here with a straight grudge match. James says that she was the one who should get the credit for the Women’s Revolution while Lynch says James left when things started getting tough (of course we know that it was really Stephanie McMahon who started the Revolution by just talking about it). This was preceded by James dressing up like a luchadora, which kind of fits her given how off the wall she can be at times.

I think I’ll go with James here as I can’t bring myself to say WWE will go with Lynch as we head into “Wrestlemania XXXIII”. There’s a logic to having Lynch fight back and regain the title in Orlando but I have a feeling we’re more likely to get a big multi-woman tag or some mess like that instead. Therefore, James wins here and Lynch lives to fight another day, as is the case so often with her.

Tag Team Turmoil

There are so many teams in this match that aren’t worth mentioning so I’ll just go with the defending American Alpha and their most likely challengers, the Usos. There’s just no reason to believe that the other four teams have any real chance of winning so we’ll just go with these guys, assuming there’s no debuting team added on to the end.

That being said, I’ll take Alpha to retain and continue their rather ho-hum title reign. The problem here is the same thing that has plagued so many NXT talents: WWE feels the need to take everything that makes the team work in the first place and then get rid of those things for the sake of….well I have no idea actually. Alpha wins here and prays every night that the Revival is called up and half the roster gets a bad case of the flu.

John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Dean Ambrose vs. AJ Styles vs. Baron Corbin vs. The Miz

And then there’s this, which depends on how much you believe in rumors and dirtsheets. If you buy into them, this is Wyatt’s all the way and his match with Orton is pretty much set in stone. If you don’t though, you have some options. To get it out of the way, Corbin, Ambrose (already Intercontinental Champion) and Miz are flat out not winning. That leaves us with three viable options.

Cena could certainly retain and go on to face someone at “Wrestlemania XXXIII”, though I’m not sure who that’s going to be. There’s also the chance of putting it back on Styles, though again, who would he face in Orlando? Cena again? I really can’t picture them going with that.

Given that I write for one, of course I’m going with the dirtsheets and picking Wyatt, which unfortunately means we’ll have to hear JBL’s ridiculous commentary talking about how evil Wyatt is going to be. Anyway, Wyatt winning is the logical choice here but I’m really worried about how the rest of the blue side is going to fall out for the big show.

This is one of the weirdest cards I’ve ever seen and that could mean multiple things. This could be a show where everything is a mess and shows off how horrible the Brand Split is or it could be one of the biggest surprises of the year. The whole thing is built around how well the main event goes and with the talent in there, I can’t imagine it being anything but solid at worst. I’m looking forward to the show but it still doesn’t need to exist.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

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

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What do you get when you put a bunch of wrestlers in one place and have people watch them? You get…..well normally you get a wrestling show but what I’m talking about here is a stable. Today we’re looking at the tag team/group of the year but before we get there, I need to write off a few names that will NOT be on the list for various reasons.

First up are the Bullet Club and Los Ingobernables de Japon. I know who both of them are and I’ve seen some of their work but I haven’t seen enough of them to really put something together about them. Now go ahead and tell me how horrible I am for not watching enough New Japan.

Second, the Young Bucks won’t be on here for reasons of I can’t stand them.

As usual these are in no particular order.

1. DIY.

Do I need to do anything else here besides just showing you their matches with the Revival? That match in Toronto is almost a guarantee for Match of the Year (or a tie in my case) and that makes them really hard to overlook. The guys are just flat out awesome and know how to do this tag team thing like almost no one else can today. They’re entertaining guys and that’s all that matters down in NXT.

What’s even more impressive about DIY is the fact that they were able to do this while following American Alpha, who looked like the best team in a long time. What does it tell you when a team has to follow the best team people have seen in years and manage to outshine them and have an even better match? That just does not happen in wrestling and that’s what we got with DIY.

2. Enzo and Big Cass.

Now this is at the entirely different end of the spectrum as Enzo and Cass aren’t exactly the most technically sound team in the world but they’re just so entertaining almost every single week. If nothing else, just look at them as Woody and Buzz Lightyear on the Halloween episode of Monday Night Raw. That brought a genuine smile to my face and that doesn’t happen very often.

I don’t know if Enzo and Cass will ever be a serious tag team but if all they do is serve as a means to make Cass into a singles star, that’s just fine. Enzo is a great talker and gets to showcase that gift of jab as long as he doesn’t keep getting hurt. Cass is the real star of the team though and there’s a lot of entertainment to be had watching him try to do the East River Crossing on big guys.

3. Broken Hardys.

I’ve talked a lot about how amazing the Broken Universe stuff was in 2016 but what a lot of people overlook is how the wrestling has gone. While Matt might not be the best in ring performer, Jeff is still better than most wrestlers in the company and can more carry the team when they’re actually having matches.

I know the Hardys are entertaining but if you have the Tag Team Titles for so many months, you have to be able to do more than just do some weird stuff in the backyard. Let Jeff do most of the match while Matt gets to be a little wacky on the side but I wouldn’t go much further than that. The key to the Hardys is to keep Matt under control and let the great team be great, which doesn’t happen often enough.

4. American Alpha.

You knew I was going to get here at some point. American Alpha absolutely took NXT by storm and looked like one of the best tag teams of all time. They had one of the best opening matches of all time against Revival at Takeover: Dallas and wound up winning the Smackdown Tag Team Titles to end the year.

That’s where the team moves up a spot for me: not only did they have success on the NXT roster but they also pulled off something special on the main roster in such a short time. They’re one of the most entertaining teams I’ve seen in a long time and are basically the modern Steiners. They even used the Steiner Bulldog as a nice tribute and that’s never a bad thing at all.

5. Revival.

Speaking of American Alpha, this team managed to go from one excellent feud to an even better one with a pair of match of the year candidates. I can’t remember the last time that happened and it’s just amazing to watch. This is a team that just gets how to be villains and while I’m not sure that’s going to work so well on the main roster, it’s made for some outstanding stuff down in NXT.

It’s so rare to see a team that wrestles the old school work on a body part style in the vein of the Andersons and that means we got to see Andersons vs. Steiners in 2016. I had a blast watching that American Alpha match but I was blown away seeing them have a completely different style match against DIY. Maybe they won’t do well on NXT but it was more than worthy of being the best team in NXT.

6. New Day.

Oh yeah you knew we were getting here at some point. New Day might be the most over tag team since the Legion of Doom and that’s some very rare company to be in. They were one of the most over teams you’ll ever see and sweet goodness the pops and merchandise sales are unthinkable. Then there’s the whole longest reigning Tag Team Champions in history and all that jazz.

I don’t know what New Day does going forward but they’re some of the most entertaining tag wrestlers in a long time. They managed to take some of the dumbest jokes in wrestling history and turned them into either a t-shirt or a freaking cereal that was sold in stores. How in the world does that even work? Like….THEY HAVE THEIR OWN CEREAL!

Overall though, I’m going with Revival. I just can’t get over how amazing they managed to become in the ring and having two outstanding matches (not counting the other great stuff they did aside from the two title losses). I’d love to see them on the main roster but if they just have to stay down in NXT and be one of the best tag teams in the last twenty five years, so be it.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Who will take the final Royal Rumble spots and who won’t?

http://wrestlingrumors.net/kbs-review-elite-eight/

Smackdown
Date: January 10, 2017
Location: Raising Cane’s River Center Arena, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, John Bradshaw Layfield, David Otunga, Tom Phillips

As is becoming the regular case around here, we’ve got a title match set up coming into the show. In this case it’s the Tag Team Titles being defended as American Alpha put the titles on the line against the Wyatt Family. Other than that we have John Cena’s first singles match in a long time as he faces Baron Corbin. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Miz vs. Dean Ambrose over the last few weeks, including all the slaps and without the new interviewer stumbling over her words.

Here’s Ambrose for the Ambrose Asylum as hosted by the new Intercontinental Champion. Let’s get this out of the way right now: he’s in the Royal Rumble. Other than that, he’s annoyed that they can’t have a live alligator in the ring due to not having a permit. He does however have a plastic alligator head named Maryse, which brings him to his guest. That would of course be Miz and Maryse, who cut him off before their introductions.

Miz is in the Rumble as well but more importantly, he wants Ambrose to hand over the title that Miz should have retained due to outside interference. Dean agrees to give Miz something but it’s the Participation Award from a few weeks back. The fight is on and Maryse slaps her husband by mistake, setting up Dirty Deeds to Miz. Maryse is handed the award as Dean leaves.

We recap Nikki Bella vs. Natalya to set up their match tonight.

Nikki is on her way to the ring when Natalya jumps her.

Nikki Bella vs. Natalya

Bella charges out to the ring without selling anything (because that would mean she’s not FEARLESS) and it’s a big brawl, meaning no match. Natalya takes out the bad leg and puts Nikki in the Sharpshooter on the floor.

Dolph Ziggler has nothing to say about what he did to Kalisto last week.

Kalisto vs. Dolph Ziggler

A very fast hurricanrana sends Ziggler outside to start so he opts for some technical wrestling to take Kalisto down instead. The masked man tries to speed things up but gets kicked in the head to put him on the floor as we take a break. Back with Kalisto being stuck in and then fighting out of a chinlock. Ziggler charges into an elbow in the corner and gets rolled up for the pin at 8:37.

Rating: D+. Dang that’s not good. I’m sure this is part of a longer form story though I’m not sure what Ziggler is going to do next. I like the idea of making Ziggler even angrier than he already was but I don’t trust WWE to be able to follow up on this. Kalisto winning is cool though there’s no secret to the fact that it’s just a way to advance Ziggler’s story.

Post match Ziggler lays Kalisto out and destroys him with a chair as CHILDREN are watching. Yes I say they’re WATCHING THE SHOW IN FRONT OF THEM! THIS IS SO FREAKING INTERESTING! Apollo Crews comes out for the fight as Ziggler goes to leave, only to get chaired down as well.

American Alpha isn’t underestimating the Wyatts but they know they can beat them.

John Cena wants to know who Baron Corbin thinks he is. Cena is the one who needs to make a statement and he’s been called a lot of things in WWE. Last week, AJ Styles called him a has been and Corbin agreed with him. Tonight the lone wolf may be on the prowl tonight but his name is John Cena and his time is now.

The Wyatts say they’ll win the titles back.

Tag Team Titles: Wyatt Family vs. American Alpha

Alpha is defending and it’s Bray and Randy for the Wyatts. Bray takes Jordan down to start with Jason easily taking over on the mat. Randy comes in and gives up a blind tag to Gable, who armbars Bray over the top rope. Sister Abigail is countered into a rollup and Gable follows it up with a dive off the apron.

Back in and Bray just runs Gable over, allowing Orton to drop him back first onto the barricade. I heartily approve of anything that means a hot tag to Jordan. The chinlock doesn’t work very well so Orton goes with a slingshot suplex for two. Gable finally gets up and makes the tag to Jordan so things can speed way up. It must be the straps coming down to slow down wind resistance. Harper grabs Jordan’s leg though and Jason gets draped across the top rope, sending us to a break.

Back with Orton raking his boot over Jordan’s eyes before handing it back to Bray, who eats one heck of a clothesline. The real hot tag brings in Gable for some bad looking right hands on Wyatt. A top rope clothesline gets two on Orton but Harper gets on the apron, only to be knocked off when Orton goes for the elevated DDT. Harper gets back up and distracts Orton, allowing Gable to ram them together for an O’Connor roll on Orton to retain the titles at 15:32.

Rating: B-. This was a storyline loss for the Wyatts and I’m getting curious about where it’s going. I’m actually not sure what Orton’s endgame is here but if it sets up a bit match against Bray, so be it. Orton really could be on either side here and that makes things all the more interesting.

Post match Harper and Orton are about to fight with Bray trying to break it up. Harper throws a superkick but hits Bray by mistake. Bray looks at both of them as the fans chant Randy. Wyatt leaves on his own.

Corbin is ready for Cena.

Clips from Wrestlemania XXXIV press conference in New Orleans.

Becky Lynch asks Daniel Bryan who was the other La Luchadora. Alexa Bliss comes in and says she was about to find out who was under the mask when Lynch messed everything up. Bryan doesn’t want to hear it and gives Becky a title match next week inside a steel cage.

Carmella vs. CJ Lunde

The jobber’s last name is probably a rib as Lunde is Arn Anderson’s real last name. Carmella runs her over a few times until Ellsworth grabs Lunde’s leg. A hard left hand gets two for Carmella so Lunde goes outside to yell at James. Back in and a badly botched Downward Spiral sets up the Code of Silence for the tap out at 2:41.

We look back at Undertaker entering the Royal Rumble last night.

Carmella is going to take Ellsworth on a shopping spree next week.

Baron Corbin is ready to end Cena. AJ Styles comes in and tells Corbin to impersonate the champ and beat Cena up.

Baron Corbin vs. John Cena

Styles is on commentary. Corbin wastes no time in kicking Cena in the face to put him on the floor as we take an early break. Back with Cena not being able to hit the AA because someone under 300lbs is too heavy for him to lift. They head outside with Cena throwing him into the steps for his first breather of the match.

As Styles talks about how he wants Cena to lose because he just doesn’t like John, Corbin gets in a powerslam for two. Deep Six gets the same so Baron opts to just squeeze Cena with a bearhug. That lasts as long as a bearhug is going to last before Cena fights out and grabs a tornado DDT. Back up and the ProtoBomb sets up the AA for the clean pin on Corbin at 11:02.

Rating: C+. This was just a match really and I’m ok with seeing Corbin lose clean here. He got to beat on Cena for a good while before going down to the biggest name in a long time. I’d have been fine with Styles causing the fall in there somehow but either way it’s a fine way to have Cena come back and Corbin doesn’t lose a ton of steam.

Overall Rating: B-. This one didn’t have as much going for it as recent episodes but it’s still far better than almost anything else WWE has been putting on as of late. Again, you can see the Ryan Ward influence here by setting up stuff for next week to keep you coming back. How many times have you seen a show completely wrapped up with nowhere to go next week? That’s bad storytelling and thankfully you never see it on Smackdown anymore.

Results

Kalisto b. Dolph Ziggler – Rollup

American Alpha b. Wyatt Family – O’Connor roll to Orton

Carmella b. CJ Lunde – Code of Silence

John Cena b. Baron Corbin – Attitude Adjustment

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Now we’re at one of the big ones. All the stories, all the hype and all the talk doesn’t mean much if the match at the end is worthless. That’s where we’ve arrived: what is the best match of the year? As uninteresting as WWE has seemed, it’s actually been a stacked year for big time matches and there are several to pick from. As usual these are in no particular order and only WWE matches will be considered. Also note that if a match isn’t included, it’s either because I didn’t think it was as good or, far more simply, I didn’t see it.

1. AJ Styles vs. John Cena – Summerslam

Let’s get one of the big ones out of the way early on. This is the definition of the Big Match John fight with Cena coming back to face Styles one more time, only to actually get pinned clean. That’s something that might happen to Cena once a year (twice at most) and for him to put Styles over was a huge deal. This is the match that made Styles into a main event player and broke the idea of Cena losing the first match but winning the rematch.

Above all else though, this was about the action. These two beat the heck out of each other for over twenty three minutes and it felt like the big match it was supposed to be. This was two top level stars at the top of their game fighting at one of the biggest shows of the year. While that happens a lot, this felt like they lived up to the hype, which is what you have to expect from people at their level.

2. Kota Ibushi vs. TJ Perkins – Cruiserweight Classic Finale

This is a simple idea: take a pair of talented guys and let them fly around the ring for the better part of fifteen minutes because they’re some of the most talented cruiserweights in the world. Ibushi was one of the favorites to win the tournament from the start but Perkins gave him a real challenge, eventually beating him to advance to the finals and winning the tournament later in the night.

Instead of wasting time with generic moves and almost no characters, we had two guys who are talented and doing all kinds of things to fire the crowd up. The crowd helped as well with the kind of people who wanted to see this style match and appreciate it far more than the average WWE fans. The lack of a story is fine because this was all about the action, which is the point of something like the Cruiserweight Classic.

3. Royal Rumble

Take thirty people, put them in a battle royal with timed intervals, the last man standing is the WWE World Champion. It’s a very simple concept and something that even non-wrestling fans can easily understand. This was all about the World Title with defending champion Roman Reigns having to start the match because everything was rigged against him. This included the eventual winner Triple H coming in as a surprise entrant.

The match was all about the drama because there was always the chance that someone was going to be a surprise World Champion. The ending was a bit predictable but the mere chance was enough to make things more interesting. For once it wasn’t about the title match down the road because it was all about the title then and there. It’s a risky play but for once it actually worked, making up for the fact that it hadn’t happened since 1992.

4. Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte – “Monday Night Raw” – July 25

This has easily been the greatest year for women’s wrestling (at least on the main roster) and it would be criminal to not have at least one match from them on here. In this case, we’ll go with the first post-Brand Split episode of “Monday Night Raw” when Charlotte FINALLY lost the title she had held (realistically) since October. Banks had been the most popular woman on the roster for a long time and the title change was long overdue, meaning the time was right on a major show like a landmark episode of “Monday Night Raw”.

The fact that it was the main event of the show is an afterthought at this point and that’s what’s the most amazing part. Trish Stratus vs. Lita in the main event of “Monday Night Raw” was legendary and now these two are main eventing multiple times a year. It’s also one of the best women’s matches of the year because these two have amazing chemistry and it was excellent television watching them change the title here.

5. AJ Styles vs. Roman Reigns – Payback

Steve Austin called this one of the best WWE matches he’s seen in years and that means it’s at least worth a look. Styles won the title shot on the “Monday Night Raw” after “Wrestlemania XXXII” and wound up giving Reigns a run for his money. Sure it took the help of Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson but you don’t need a newcomer giving the new champ a real test on his own just yet.

What followed was an outstanding power vs. speed match with Styles giving him everything he had and getting some insane near falls. Reigns eventually won with a spear and then won the rematch in the same fashion, but these matches made Styles feel like a major player. He was facing Cena soon after and then winning the Smackdown World Title. Sometimes it’s all about that first match though and this one was a blast throughout.

6. DIY vs. Revival – Takeover: Toronto

Now we’ve got one of the frontrunners. If there’s one thing NXT knows how to do, it’s set up things from the beginning and move forward until you NEED to see the big ending finally take place. That’s what we had here with DIY getting closer and closer to winning the NXT Tag Team Titles. It was finally set up for the big time NXT gimmick match: two out of three falls. That meant you could see extra wrestling and my goodness did they blow the roof off the place.

The match itself was some of the best wrestling NXT has ever put together with some of the hottest near falls I’ve ever seen. The ending was even better with DIY hooking a double submission to make Revival tap out at the exact same time because there was just nothing left for them to do. It’s much more about putting everything together to tell a complete story with the challengers getting closer and closer until they FINALLY captured the titles because they were the better team. That’s how wrestling is supposed to work and it was in one of the best matches of the year.

7. Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens – Battleground

If you have a feud between two very talented wrestlers, at some point one of them actually needs to win their share of the matches every now and then. That’s been the problem for Zayn over the years as he very rarely actually beats Owens. It had to happen at some point though and that’s what happened here. After all those major losses (and one win on a nothing “Monday Night Raw”), Zayn FINALLY got to beat Owens on the big stage at “Battleground 2016”.

Much like the DIY vs. Revival match, this was all about the story. The idea was that Owens was just flat out better than Zayn, who kept getting close but could never close the deal. That’s what “Battleground 2016” was all about and the fact that it was billed as the final match between the two of them (of course it wasn’t) made it feel like a huge moment. Zayn needed the win, so of course WWE then did a total of nothing with him after that and made Owens the Raw World Champion. But still, Zayn winning was a great moment and the natural chemistry between the two of them made it even better.

8. Team Smackdown Live vs. Team Monday Night Raw – Survivor Series

It was billed as the other main event of the show (along side FANTASY WARFARE) and my goodness did it manage to work well. This match lasted almost an hour, making it even longer than some Royal Rumbles. The eliminations took their time and the match was allowed to build up instead of being rushed along until we get to the big ones at the end, making it feel like an event instead of just a regular match.

The fact that it was the Wyatts being the sole survivors instead of Reigns and Seth Rollins made it even more important. For once, Bray Wyatt got a big win and looked like a star, which hopefully means something going forward. Unfortunately the match is almost entirely forgotten after the big main event became all anyone remembers from the show. That being said, we had a great match beforehand and it’s worth looking at again.

9. Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler – No Mercy

Unlike several previous moments, this was all about drama instead of the action. While the wrestling was good, the idea that it was someone’s career vs. a title made it seem important. Ziggler was on a downward spiral at this point and Miz looked better and better every week so the idea that Ziggler could win seemed like a long shot. It was such a long shot that the official preview for the following episode of “Smackdown Live” talked about Ziggler’s exit from the company.

Ziggler of course won, but the fact that it was billed up as a match that he HAD to win was the key to the whole thing. Miz can talk his way into anything and he had us believing that Ziggler’s whole life revolved around this one match. It told a great story and set up the match as something that feels like it matters for a change instead of “eh we can just do the same thing next week.” Sure Ziggler dropped the title back a few weeks later but he won here, which is what mattered more than anything else.

10. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn – Takeover: Dallas

Until DIY vs. Revival, this was the undisputed clubhouse leader for Match of the Year and it’s still one of the most amazing things I’ve seen. I was lucky enough to be in the crowd for this show and I bought all the way into everything that happened throughout. This was all about beating the absolute heck out of each other with the winner being the one to survive. It was also Zayn’s grand finale in NXT, which wasn’t the biggest surprise when you consider he was in the Intercontinental Title match the next night.

This isn’t a match that needs a lot of talking about because it was all about beating the heck out of each other and little more. Nakamura was the new kid on the block and Zayn was on his way to bigger and better things but we were lucky enough to get to see one of the hardest hitting brawls I’ve ever seen for the transition between eras. Absolutely incredible stuff and something truly special.

11. Cesaro vs. The Miz vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn – Extreme Rules

We’ll wrap it up with a forgotten classic as Miz defends the Intercontinental Title against three guys who probably should have been able to rip his head off without blinking an eye. What followed was a nearly twenty minute long match with all four more than working hard and getting in near fall after near fall. As you might expect, Miz wound up stealing the pin after someone else did the work and that’s exactly what should have happened.

This was all about the action and the question of who was going to wind up with the title in the end. In other words, it made me wonder what might happen and I wanted to see what they were going to do at the end of the match. You don’t see that happen in matches like these very often and it made the Intercontinental Title feel important for the first time in far too long.

12. The Final Deletion – Impact Wrestling – June 28

While there were better matches throughout the year, I don’t think any of them came close to this one’s level of creativity and shock value. I know there were other, bigger versions of the same formula but the first one worked better than the rest. By the time we got to Tag Team Apocalypto or the Great War, a lot of this stuff had lost its steam. The first time we saw it though, it was some of the most creative stuff ever done on a wrestling show.

The Hardys really have put together something amazing and it worked so well as a total change of pace. It might not have had much to do with wrestling but there was a ring and a three count so I guess we can classify it as a match. This is more of a glorified honorable mention but it wouldn’t be fair to leave it out.

That brings us to the winner and I don’t like doing something like this but I have to give it a tie. I have to go with a combination of Zayn vs. Nakamura and DIY vs. Revival. No matter how many times I think about these two matches, I just can’t find a way to pick between the two of them. DIY vs. Revival was a long term story but Nakamura vs. Zayn was the short term story that began and ended at the bells. Either of those can work to perfection and these two tied for Match of the Year.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Smackdown
Date: January 3, 2016
Location: Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, John Bradshaw Layfield, David Otunga, Tom Phillips

It’s the first show of the year and because this is Smackdown Live, they actually have something set up. In this case it’s a double shot with Dean Ambrose challenging Miz for the Intercontinental Title and John Cena signing his contract for the Royal Rumble World Title match against AJ Styles. Let’s get to it.

Here are Miz and Maryse to get things going as we look at a recap of Miz vs. Ambrose. Miz has a New Year’s resolution and it’s to be more forgiving. That’s very appropriate because there is a certain woman who needs to come out here and apologize right now. Miz finds it interesting that he went after Renee Young and now Ambrose has a title shot. Cue Ambrose who gets slapped by Maryse. Dean says the hard part is over tonight because Maryse hits WAY harder than Miz.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Baron Corbin

Ziggler starts fast with a failed superkick before hamming away with right hands. Corbin will have none of a dropkick though and the slow beatdown begins. Some choking in the corner is followed by even more right hands before Ziggler is sent back first into the apron. Baron finally charges into an elbow and it’s time for a break.

Back with JBL doing his very JBL-style over the top commentary about a clothesline from Corbin. Ziggler gets in his neckbreaker but the Fameasser is countered into another wicked clothesline. Now the Fameasser connects for two and CUT OUT THE STUPID REACTION SHOTS. Especially when it’s just some woman smiling. The running DDT is countered but the Zig Zag scores for two. Back up and Ziggler charges straight into the End of Days for the pin at 13:42.

Rating: B-. The more I see of Corbin, the more I’m liking the heck out of him. They’re pushing him as hard as they can right now and it’s already starting to stick. The guy is getting the hang of this in a hurry and now he’s winning matches to back it up. I’m digging the heck out of this push and that’s a good thing.

Post match Corbin grabs a chair but Kalisto makes the save. Corbin bails so Ziggler superkicks Kalisto, saying he doesn’t need any help from anyone.

Carmella is in the back when James Ellsworth comes up to offer her a shirt. She’s impressed and calls him fabulous, which means he can accompany her to the ring tonight.

Apollo Crews tells Ziggler that wasn’t cool and a brawl almost breaks out.

We look back at Alexa Bliss vs. Becky Lynch with La Luchadora costing Lynch the title.

Becky Lynch vs. La Luchadora

Lynch easily takes her to the mat and pounds away at the mask. The Bexploder makes it even worse as we hear about how bad Luchadora’s costume is. As we hear about Los Conquistaroes, Luchadora slides under the ring and comes back out with one heck of a quick dye job. The now blonde Luchadora drops Becky and goes up for Twisted Bliss. That’s only good for a big crash though and the Disarm-Her makes Luchadora tap at 2:04.

The new Luchadora is unmasked as Alexa and the double beatdown ensues.

Here’s Daniel Bryan for the Styles vs. Cena contract signing. The guys come out and Styles starts talking to Bryan, saying they’re cut from the same cloth. They’ll wrestle anyone, anywhere at any time but Cena is gone for four months and gets handed a title shot. Bryan goes into a speech about Smackdown winning the ratings battle against Raw last week and how it happened because of how the top stars were around last week.

Bryan leaves so AJ goes into a rant about how Bryan and Cena are basically brothers-in-law. Last year, Cena told AJ to get a big win or be a big indy guy. Now the tables are turned because if Cena loses, maybe he doesn’t belong in AJ’s company. A few years back, Cena was talking about how the Rock left the WWE high and dry and he was absolutely right. Now though, John Cena is the same as the Rock because he has been great for WWE. The two words that matter there are “has been”.

What AJ thinks is bothering Cena is that he’ll never be the movie star the Rock is and he’ll never been AJ Styles in the ring. Cena finally gets the chance to reply and says part of being a man is pushing back when someone crosses the line. AJ just made the biggest mistake of his life when he ticked Cena off and now Cena has no respect for him. A lot of people have said something similar to him because they forget his passion.

Cena ripped his shoulder apart and was back in four months instead of a year. WWE tells Styles where to go but they have to tell Cena to stop doing so much. Everyone else is gone but Cena is still here because that’s passion. There’s already one signature on that contract and Cena is ready to sign because everyone needs this match. People try to say that Cena sucks but they realize on their best day, they can’t be him.

Cena signs….and here’s Baron Corbin. Baron says he won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal on his first day and now he’s going to be the first Smackdown star entered in the Royal Rumble. Cena is so glad that Corbin is out here because it means John might actually get a fight here. John is ready to go but AJ kicks him in the head. Corbin says Cena’s time is up and walks away.

Maryse slaps Renee and tells her to never touch Miz again.

Carmella vs. Aliyah

Aliyah is from NXT and Ellsworth is at ringside. Carmella runs her over to start and sends Aliyah into the corner for the Bronco Buster. A chinlock goes nowhere and sets up Aliyah’s comeback but Ellsworth offers a distraction. Carmella gets in a superkick and the Code of Silence is good for the submission at 2:57.

American Alpha vs. Breezango

Non-title. Grand Amplitude ends Breeze in 32 seconds due to Tyler offering Gable a ticket.

Post match the Wyatts appear and say they’re coming for the titles next week. Orton does the “run” line and Harper isn’t pleased.

Here are Nikki Bella and Natalya with something to say. Nikki thinks it’s interesting that Natalya complains about her getting everything because of Cena when Natalya copies everything from the Hart Family. We see a Tweet from Bret about how much he likes Nikki but Natalya suggests that she, shall we say, coerced him to say that. Once Nikki’s looks fade, Cena is going to leave her and she’ll die alone (a big plot point on Total Divas). Nikki lays her out with the forearm.

The new interviewer can barely ask Ambrose if he’s ready for the Intercontinental Title shot but Dean cuts her off to say he’s going to hurt Miz.

Next week it’s Natalya vs. Nikki, Cena vs. Corbin and American Alpha vs. the Wyatts for the titles.

Intercontinental Title: Miz vs. Dean Ambrose

Miz is defending. Ambrose takes him down to start and it’s already time for a chase. That means a breather with Maryse on the floor as Ambrose is almost pacing back and forth to get his hands on Miz. Dean even turns his back on Miz and lets him get in a cheap shot, which earns Miz a trip over the announcers’ table.

Back from a break with Miz being backdropped out to the floor and taken down with the standing elbow. Miz starts in on the leg but gets caught in a backbreaker for two. A superplex is broken up and the Skull Crushing Finale gets two for the champ. It’s time for the YES Kicks but Dean sends him outside for the suicide dive.

Maryse slaps him and Dean actually talks the referee into not DQ’ing Miz. Instead Maryse is ejected, leaving Miz to hit Dean in the back with the belt for a VERY close two. You can hear the fans come back to life on the kickout. Back up and Dirty Deeds gives Ambrose the title at 14:04.

Rating: B-. This worked for one simple reason: we didn’t sit around waiting for the title to change hands on the pay per view for the sake of waiting around on the pay per view. If you consider Ambrose’s character, he should have been ready to take Miz’s head off the second Miz started things with Renee. Waiting another month wouldn’t have made sense and would have allowed the feud to cool off.

Miz can get the title back later if he has to but the key thing here is Dean won the match and the title when he should have instead of when the calendar says so. That’s good storytelling and it’s no surprise on Smackdown. Also well done on not having Young out here. It wouldn’t fit for her to be there and it would have been so easy to go with the illogical move.

Overall Rating: B+. Normally I’d break down a lot of stuff here and go over why it was good or bad but what’s the point? Practically EVERYTHING here is really good as they take such simple ideas and turn them into interesting points. The wrestling was good, the talking was good and somehow this was a downgrade over last week’s classic. That says a lot because this was a heck of a great show.

Results

Baron Corbin b. Dolph Ziggler – End of Days

Becky Lynch b. La Luchadora – Disarm-Her

Carmella b. Aliyah – Code of Silence

American Alpha b. Breezango – Grand Amplitude to Breeze

Dean Ambrose b. Miz – Dirty Deeds

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MQKDV5O

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

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