IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: September 8, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett, Beth Phoenix

It’s time for the sequel to last week’s four way Iron Man match with Finn Balor vs. Adam Cole for the NXT Title. This could be a classic if they’re given the time and actually have a finish instead of setting up something for Clash Of Champions. I’ll give NXT the benefit of the doubt not to do that twice in a row though and hope for the best. Let’s get to it.

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

Quick recap of last week’s Iron Man match.

NXT Title: Finn Balor vs. Adam Cole

The title is vacant coming in and they’re not wasting time tonight. After the Big Match Intros, it’s a battle over a headlock to get things going. Cole takes him down into an armbar but Balor reverses into one of his own and slaps on a headscissors on the mat. That’s broken up and Cole hits a basement dropkick, followed by some chops against the ropes. The fireman’s carry backbreaker gets two on Balor and we take a break.

Back with Balor working on a chinlock and then slamming him into an elbow drop for two. Balor knocks him into the corner and hits his own basement dropkick for another near fall. Cole is back with some shots to the face and a pump kick to put Balor down. A Backstabber gives Cole two of his own and a Shining Wizard cuts off Balor’s shotgun dropkick. The Last Shot misses though and Balor hits a double stomp to the ribs to take over again.

Some hard stomping puts Cole on the floor but he’s back up with a superkick for the double knockdown. Back from another break with Cole grabbing a Figure Four to work on the knee. Balor finally escapes and hits the shotgun dropkick. The Coup de Grace connects for a delayed two (because of the bad knee) and commentary LOSES IT at the kickout to really sell the impact.

Cole goes back to the Figure Four but this time Balor makes the rope. A superkick into the Last Shot gives Cole two and there’s the shocked face that Cole does so well. Back up and Balor drives him into the corner for the reverse 1916. Cole crotches him on top and it’s a super 1916 to give Balor the pin and the title at 23:16.

Rating: A-. That’s the right call as we just got done with a year plus Cole reign and Balor has been needing a big win to get himself back on track in NXT. I would have bet on him being the next big challenger to Karrion Kross anyway so this makes a lot of sense. It was also a heck of a match which got some time and had the knee injury working as a story throughout. Nice job here and thank you for not having any kind of a surprise twist.

Rhea Ripley is ready for Mercedes Martinez and grabs the cage.

William Regal congratulates Balor for the win and Cole shakes his hand as well. The face turn continues.

Robert Stone finds Shotzi Blackheart’s tank and is ready to hit it with a pipe. Cue Shotzi to hit him in the face but Aliyah pops up to knock Shotzi through a curtain…and right into Io Shirai. Aliyah panics and the fight heads into the arena where the beatdown is on. Stone tries to come off the top but gets punched out of the air. Shirai hits the moonsault to Aliyah and Shotzi hits the top rope backsplash to Stone….but picks up the Women’s Title, which Shirai doesn’t like.

We go to the Gargano House where Candice LeRae is nervous about dinner with Tegan Nox. Johnny Gargano says it’s cool but the nerves are still there. Nox shows up and Johnny puts on his good face before letting her in. He teases being annoyed at her but says it’s just a joke before bringing Nox inside. LeRae hugs her and Nox is nervous as the two stare at her.

Timothy Thatcher has a film study on Damien Priest, who mistakenly thinks life is a party. It’s time to do some work.

Velveteen Dream vs. Ashante Adonis

Dream doesn’t seem worried to start and strikes away but Adonis pops back up and hits a DDT into a nipup. Adonis hammers away but Dream gets serious and pounds him down. The Dream Valley Driver is good for the pin at 1:35.

Post match Dream grabs the microphone but Kushida, who Dream attacked a few weeks ago, runs in to jump him before Dream can say a word. Referees try to break it up but Kushida manages to pull him shoulder first into the post. A cross armbreaker in the corner makes Dream tap, because that’s what you do in a brawl.

Video on Breezango winning the Tag Team Titles but getting jumped by Imperium last week. Breezango took the only nice accessories they had so Imperium want the titles back next week.

Back at the Gargano House, Johnny realizes he’s making this weird and leaves the two women alone. Candice thinks Nox should admit to her mistakes but Nox isn’t sure what those are. Nox asks what she’s talking about so Candice explains the Gargano Way and thinks Nox is jealous. That’s not what’s going on but Candice offers to show her the way.

Bronson Reed vs. Austin Theory

Reed works on a headlock to start before sending Theory flying with a shoulder. A bottom rope springboard elbow gets two and Reed flips him back in from the apron. We hit the big chinlock until Theory fights up and tries a sunset flip. Reed sits down on his chest for two and sends Theory outside, meaning it’s a cannonball off the apron as we take a break.

Back with Reed fighting out of a chinlock and hitting the Jagged Edge for two. Reed sends him into the corner but Reed hits a forearm into a rolling Blockbuster for two of his own. Theory tries the TKO but collapses under the weight. Reed adds the top rope splash to the back for the pin at 10:49.

Rating: C+. This might have been a bit longer than it needed to be but they both looked good, which shouldn’t be a surprise. Reed has come out of nowhere and turned into something rather good while Theory looks to have all the tools in the world minus experience. I could go for more of both of them and that’s a good sign for the future.

Cole says Balor was the better man and they went through the same Iron Man match. Balor better be ready though because if Cole gets another shot, he’s taking the title. Total face promo from Cole here.

Mercedes Martinez wants to be locked in a cage with Rhea Ripley so she can show who the real animal is.

Roderick Strong vs. Killian Dain

Fallout from Dain saving Drake Maverick from the Undisputed Era and Bobby Fish is in Strong’s corner. Strong goes after Dain to start and the monster doesn’t like that. He knocks Strong around the ring and hammers away in the corner until a leg lariat puts Dain on the apron.

A Rock Bottom from the apron takes Strong down but Fish kicks the ankle out and we take a break. Back with Reed throwing him across the ring and hitting the running crossbody for two. Fish pulls Strong out of the way of the Vader Bomb so Dain drops Fish from the apron. The distraction is enough for Strong to hit a jumping knee to the face for the pin at 7;35.

Rating: C. Dain is someone else who should be an easy layup and they’re finally starting to get the hang of him. It’s better late than never, but it’s weird to see a monster like him getting beaten like this. It’s interesting to see the Undisputed Era showing some differences and that could go in several different directions, which is always a good option.

Post match the beatdown is on until Drake Maverick makes the save with a pipe. Maverick is beaten down as well but Dain gets the pipe to chase the Era off. Maverick slowly gets up and offers a handshake but Dain punches him out.

Back at the dinner, the ladies toast a new beginning until Candice throws a salad at her. Nox eats some lettuce and throws a drink at Candice, so here’s Johnny to interrupt. That earns him a bowl of spaghetti over the head so Candice throws something at Nox, only to hit and break the TV instead. Nox bails and Candice chases after her as Johnny looks at the broken screen.

Damien Priest thinks Timothy Thatcher is ugly and his game plan is pretty easy: hit Thatcher in the face and make him uglier than he already is. Priest promises a sweet Reckoning for Thatcher before the celebration can continue. Of course the interviewer is invited to join in.

Next week: Thatcher vs. Priest for the North American Title, Imperium challenges Breezango for the Tag Team Titles and Io Shirai vs. Shotzi Blackheart in a non-title match.

Mercedes Martinez vs. Rhea Ripley

In a cage with Robert Stone at ringside. Martinez goes for some weapons to start but Rhea is right there to jump her from behind. A table and some chairs go inside the cage with them and Ripley closes the door herself. Martinez sends her into the steel but Ripley does the same and then sends her in again for a bonus. The fisherman’s suplex gets Martinez out of trouble and she powerbomb Rhea out of the corner as we take a break.

Back with Ripley throwing a chair at Martinez’s face to catch her on top. The running dropkick sends Martinez into the cage and her HEAD gets caught between the cage walls. Rhea pulls her out (without ripping off an ear) and hits a top rope superplex for a delayed two. Martinez is back with a spinebuster and they’re both down again.

It’s Rhea up first and she grabs the Prism Trap until Martinez grabs the kendo stick to break it up. Stone tries to interfere but gets caught climbing, allowing Ripley to beat him up on top of the cage. Martinez catches her up top though and grabs a super neckbreaker to put both of them down again. The table is set up in the middle of the ring and Ripley loads up a fisherman’s superplex. That’s countered into a super Riptide (dang) through the table to finish Martinez at 14:21.

Rating: B+. This was a heck of a match and a lot of that has to do with the atmosphere. You had two big, strong women beating the heck out of each other for a good while in a hard hitting fight. That’s what they advertised this as being and Ripley looked like the star that she most often does. The big spots all worked and the ending looked great. I’m not sure what more you could ask for here, aside from maybe no Stone interference as he felt out of place, but other than that, this was a heck of a fight and felt like a main event.

Overall Rating: A-. To coin a phrase, this was NXT. This felt like the old days of the classic shows with the big matches delivering (to put it mildly) and the undercard working as well. What mattered the most about the undercard stuff was not only did they build things for the future, but they built reasons for these people to dislike each other for the future.

You had Thatcher’s film session, the Gargano House dinner, Breezango and Imperium’s dueling promos and the Shirai/Blackheart staredown. Those are different (enough) ways to set up feuds for the future and they made me want to see some of the matches. This was the tightest show NXT has put together in a long time and if this is what they can do unopposed, load up the moving truck and get the directions to every Tuesday night.

Oh and one more thing that helps a bit here: the evolution of Damien Priest. He has turned into this guy who is all about the party and the celebration, but there was no big moment and announcement of the change. Instead, you just saw him starting to act differently and NXT didn’t treat you like a moron who needed every tiny detail explained to you. That’s just who Priest is now and people are going with it because it was an acceptable evolution of where he went. Commentary isn’t beating you over the head with it and he’s rolling along with the change. Little things like that make a show so much easier to watch.

Results

Finn Balor b. Adam Cole – Super 1916

Velveteen Dream b. Ashante Adonis – Dream Valley Driver

Bronson Reed b. Austin Theory – Top rope splash

Roderick Strong b. Killian Dain – Jumping knee

Rhea Ripley b. Mercedes Martinez – Super Riptide through a table

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: June 25, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, MVP

It’s back to the full schedule of both Raw and Smackdown this week, which may or may not be an improvement. The show has been featuring some slightly bigger names in recent weeks so the original wrestling has been a little easier to watch. Then again you never know what is going to happen around here so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Bianca Belair vs. Ruby Riott

They start slowly with Belair catching Riott’s kick to the ribs. That means a snapmare into a standoff so Riott pulls her into a rollup. Belair grabs a cravate and hits a running clothesline into a hiptoss. Riott is right back with some rams into the buckle into a Downward Spiral. A front facelock has Belair in more trouble but she snaps off a suplex. Belair grabs a spinebuster and after shrugging off a knee to the ribs, finishes Riott with the KOD at 5:55.

Rating: C-. Belair has grown on me a lot in recent months and I’d love to see her get some more time on Raw. Why she can’t at least be involved with the Street Profits a little more than she has been in recent weeks is beyond me, but at least we’ve been getting the Viking Profits, whatever that’s worth.

From Smackdown.

There are wrestlers around the ring for Styles’ Intercontinental Title presentation. AJ is glad that everyone got their cheering right and he’s just here to say he told you so. Life’s rewards are for the people who go and claim the brass ring instead of waiting for a handout. He’s ready for the title presentation but Renee Young isn’t the right person to do it. Instead, AJ wants Daniel Bryan to do it himself.

Bryan gets in the ring and AJ says put it around his waist, but make sure not to do anything stupid. AJ says Bryan doesn’t have to do it if he’s a coward. Bryan finally puts the title on and says that last week, AJ was the better man. Bryan gets all fired up and says AJ is going to be a great champion. Imagine AJ vs. Gran Metalik or against Big E. (they both seem game), but AJ sees it a little different.

That’s fine with Bryan, who thinks Drew Gulak should get a shot because he beat AJ two weeks ago. AJ thinks Bryan is trying to get himself a title shot so he has to become #1 contender. The next person to challenge for the title is going to have to suffer the consequences. Cue the debuting Matt Riddle, much to AJ’s annoyance. AJ sees another human being looking for a handout. The fight is on with Riddle cleaning house so AJ says get a referee out here.

AJ Styles vs. Matt Riddle

The wrestlers are still around the ring. Hold on though as AJ says no shoes, no shirt, no title shot. The bell rings and Riddle hits a German suplex into the rolling gutwrench suplexes for two. Riddle hammers away on the mat and kicks him in the head for two more. More shots have AJ in the corner so he snaps off a dropkick to get a breather.

Back up and Riddle kicks him down in the corner but this time AJ hits a running clothesline to the apron. Riddle gets knocked into King Corbin and gets in an argument as we take a break. Back with AJ in control but the YES Kicks just fire Riddle up. A right hand to the head puts him down though and a snap suplex gives Styles two. AJ takes him down again and a dragon screw legwhip sends Riddle into the corner.

Riddle’s comeback is cut off with a shot to the leg but a jumping knee to the face rocks AJ. A quick suplex drops AJ again and the Broton gets two. Riddle grabs a rear naked choke but has to let go when Styles bridges back for two more. The Calf Crusher goes on so Riddle goes to the ropes, meaning AJ heads outside to get in Bryan’s face. AJ yells at Bryan before loading up the Phenomenal Forearm, only to get caught in the Bro Derek to give Riddle the pin at 12:53.

Rating: B-. That’s a good way to have a debut and the lack of a clean finish helped a bit. AJ has no one to blame but himself here and that makes for a good way to set up some potential matches in the future. You could go with Styles vs. Riddle or Bryan or maybe even all three (hopefully not), or perhaps Riddle vs. Bryan for the #1 contendership. It’s nice to have the options like that though and that’s what they did here.

Post match the lumberjacks get in the ring to celebrate with Riddle, who strikes his still awesome pose.

From Raw.

Here’s Drew McIntyre to open things up. He explains last week’s title defense….but here’s Dolph Ziggler to interrupt. Ziggler explains that he and Robert Roode have been traded to Raw in exchange for AJ Styles. We hear about McIntyre’s redemption story, with Ziggler bringing him up from nothing and now McIntyre is WWE Champion.

That sounds like a reason for Ziggler to get a title shot at Extreme Rules, but McIntyre doesn’t remember Ziggler winning many matches without Big Daddy Claymore there to help him out. Ziggler has become exactly what the two of them used to despise: an entitled jackass. It was Ziggler who named him the Scottish Psychopath so imagine what McIntyre will do with the title on the line. Ziggler wants the match, so it’s set for Extreme Rules for the title.

Cedric Alexander/Ricochet vs. Austin Theory/Murphy

Again, did these people come to the wrong show? Murphy works on Ricochet’s arm to start until the reversal lets Ricochet do the opposite. They flip up to a standoff and that means a double tag. Alexander snaps off a rollup into a basement dropkick as everything breaks down. Ricochet and Alexander snap off stereo headscissors to the floor and the teased dives take us to a break.

Back with Murphy hitting a DDT for two on Ricochet and kicking him in the back for the same. A front facelock is driven into the corner but Murphy sends him face first into the corner. Ricochet rolls out with a dropkick and a kick to the face is enough for the hot tag to Alexander. House is cleaned in a hurry, including a tornado DDT to Theory. Everything breaks down and Theory escapes the Lumbar Check. Murphy hits a running knee to finish Alexander at 10:44.

Rating: C. This is another good example of a match that could be on any given Raw but for some reason they’re stuck on Main Event. At least Austin and Murphy are able to get on the show for the sake of the Seth Rollins stuff. Ricochet and Alexander….I really don’t get it and I can’t imagine I’m alone in my confusion.

From Smackdown.

It’s time for the Firefly Fun House. Bray has been gone for a long time so he has joined a book club, learned the new Tik Tok moves, learned how to raise the dead, learned how to knit, and taken over a reptile society. Ramblin Rabbit pops in to say Bray has just been sitting in the corner muttering about losing to Braun Strowman. After a clip, a distressed Bray thanks him for the reminder. It’s true that he lost, but in defeat, he learned that he went about this the wrong way.

We cut to the arena where Braun Strowman comes out (now with what sounds like a train at the start of his music), causing Bray to give him thumbs down. Bray wasn’t lying about raising the dead and he morphs into the Wyatt Family version, saying that in order to move forward, they have to take a step back to where it all began. Bray created him so now Braun needs to come see him. Follow the buzzards and run. The lantern is blown out to end the show. Does WWE really think that Strowman’s time with the Wyatt Family was that important? And they’re going to fight at the Wyatt Compound aren’t they?

From Raw.

Here are Rey Mysterio and Dominick for a chat. Rey talks about how scary it can be to not be able to get in touch with your child. That was the case last week when Rey didn’t know Dominick was coming here to go after Rollins. Mysterio isn’t happy with what Dominick did and no matter how big or strong he may be, he’s still Rey’s son. Last week, Dominick fought for him, so tonight, Rey is going to fight for him. He needs to get revenge on Rollins, but he needs to do it on his own.

Dominick isn’t going anywhere though, so Rollins can come fight a family. Cue Rollins to say Mysterio has put him in a difficult situation. Should he come to the ring to destroy a father in front of his son, or should he sacrifice Dominick in front of Rey? Actually never mind, because this is fate, prophecy and destiny, so he’ll take both of them at once. Austin Theory and Murphy join Rollins….but Aleister Black and Humberto Carrillo jump them from behind.

The brawl is on with Theory and Murphy being taken down, leaving Rollins surrounded. Mysterio gets in a 619 and the good guys try to take out Rollins’ eye like he did to Mysterio, only to have Murphy and Theory make the save. Rollins goes for Dominick’s eye but Black and Carrillo make the save to end the show. Dominick still isn’t all that interesting but this was a hot brawl to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. It wasn’t a bad show or anything close to it but having people this talented on Main Event is rather mind boggling. Raw isn’t exactly overflowing with interesting stuff at the moment and for some reason we’re getting people like Ricochet and Murphy in action here. It’s not the most logical thing, but then again, nothing about Main Event ever has been.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: June 8, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Samoa Joe, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

It’s the go home show for Backlash so expect to hear a lot of about the best match ever. Christian is here to interview Edge, but even more importantly, we have a Decathlon between the Street Profits and the Viking Raiders. Things like that convince me that WWE hates us at times. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s Asuka for a match vs. Charlotte but hang on as here are Bayley and Sasha Banks to interrupt. They brag about winning the Women’s Tag Team Titles, allowing them to go wherever they want. Asuka yells in Japanese so here’s Charlotte to tell them to pick up the pace. Charlotte says she needs to beat Asuka, but here are the IIconics to say they’re going to win the titles again on Sunday. Asuka yells some more and Charlotte agrees. It doesn’t matter how many titles Bayley and Sasha win because Charlotte will always see them as garbage. The fight is on and it’s Charlotte and Asuka clearing the ring.

Sasha Banks/Bayley vs. IIconics vs. Charlotte/Asuka

Non-title. Sasha headlocks Peyton down to start but the Meteora is countered into a rollup for two. They both try dropkicks at the same time, meaning it’s a standoff. Asuka and Charlotte are knocked off the apron and it’s Bayley coming in to send Peyton into the corner. There’s a knee to the ribs for two but Peyton gets over to Billie for the tag. Bayley shouts a lot so Billie pulls her down by the hair and knees her in the face.

Charlotte tags herself in and sends Bayley into the corner. There won’t be a tag to Asuka, with Charlotte opting to chop Bayley in the corner instead. Bayley avoids a charge in the corner and drives Charlotte over for the tag to Sasha. The champs stomp away until Charlotte knocks them both down (of course) and brings in Asuka.

House is cleaned in a hurry with the flying hip attack to Banks and a bulldog/clothesline combination to the IIconics. Charlotte mockingly applauds as we take a break. Back with the IIconics cleaning house until it’s off to Charlotte to take them out. Asuka tags herself in and kicks away at Billie, only to have Charlotte tag herself back in, ordering Asuka out of her ring. Chopping abounds but Asuka tags herself in again to Asuka Lock Kay for the tap at 10:42.

Rating: C. You could see where this was going the second Banks and Bayley came out because Charlotte must be involved in everything. Odds are she’s either going to be added to the Raw Women’s Title match or Charlotte and Asuka will be added to the triple threat title match. Really, you might as well just add her to both because we need her star power everywhere, or so WWE certainly seems to believe.

Post match Charlotte lays out Asuka and holds up the title. So the new Tag Team Champions (including Bayley, who has been SmackDown Women’s Champion for eight months) are afterthoughts for another Charlotte title feud. Great.

We recap Seth Rollins hosting Rey Mysterio’s retirement ceremony last week, with Dominick Mysterio looking ready to fight for his dad. Later that night, Aleister Black beat Rollins but got beaten down after the match.

Rey Mysterio joins us for a chat from his house but hang on because Rollins comes out to join commentary. Back from a break with Rey talking about seeing his doctor this morning and now he’s coming for Rollins. Seth says Rey needs to understand the power of words and all the lies that he is spreading. Rey could have walked away a hero but he needs to spread this misinformation. He had the chance to walk away a legend so now Rollins is inviting Rey and Dominick to come to Raw next week. Rey knows this is just because he’s not cleared and yells in Spanish. Cue Black to jump Rollins as we cut to a break.

Humberto Carrillo/Aleister Black vs. Murphy/Austin Theory

Carrillo starts fast with the high angle springboard armdrag to put Theory on the apron. He’s right back in for the double tag to Murphy and Black, with the latter firing off the kicks. Murphy’s Law is countered into a rollup for one and Black adds a springboard moonsault for two. Everything breaks down and Carrillo hits a loud suicide dive onto Theory. Murphy goes up top and gets his head kicked in by Black the pin at 2:20.

Post match here’s Seth Rollins in a Mysterio mask to Mysterio’s music (which is completely different than last week when Nia Jax did the same thing in an Asuka mask) so the trio can beat down Carrillo and Black. Carrillo is sent to the floor and Black gets planted by Murphy’s Law. The Stomp leaves Black laying again.

Randy Orton is ready for Edge to be on the Peep Show.

Here’s Christian for the Peep Show with Edge. After Edge sits down, Christian says Edge is running on fumes and couldn’t pull off the Greatest Wrestling Match Ever in his prime. They’re best friends so they have to be honest with each other. Edge talks about how difficult it is to have this kind of a burden put on him. This is a different Edge though and isn’t the same guy who had to calm Christian down before all of their tag matches. It’s an Edge firing on every cylinder, even though he doesn’t know how many cylinders he has left.

Christian says he’s hearing excuses and he wants to know what Edge was expecting when he came back? Flash a smile and hit some spears before he goes home? Edge’s biggest fan was his mom, who is going to be there for this one too. Christian calls him Adam as Edge’s lip is quivering and that’s what Christian was looking for.

Edge put Orton down at Wrestlemania because he has the anti-venom and we believe in him. We think you can have the greatest match ever, and here’s Orton on the screen to interrupt. Orton is tired of hearing about this and is ready to take away every ounce of GRIT that Edge has. This Sunday, in the Greatest Wrestling Match Ever, the redemption of Edge is over. Edge: “No it’s not.” And he leaves.

That was one of the dumbest segments I can remember in a good while and sums up the problem with this entire setup. In the entire Edge and Christian segment, there was not one mention or reference to Edge winning the match. The whole point was having a great match and if Edge won, that was just a bonus. As a fan, why should I care if Edge can have a great match? I should be caring about who wins and loses, not how many stars a match is going to get. It’s one thing for a wrestling fan to think that way but for a wrestling company to be presenting that as the story? That’s a really bad sign.

MVP, in a Shad Gaspard shirt, is ready for Bobby Lashley to be in the VIP Lounge this week but R-Truth interrupts him. As Truth tries to hide in a crate, MVP asks what he is thinking by interrupting him. Cue Bobby Lashley to full nelson Truth and leave him laying.

We recap the Viking Raiders vs. Street Profits. In everything other than wrestling of course.

It’s time for the Decathlon, with five events picked per side. It’s a bunch of rapid fire competitions so here’s the short version:

The Profits won a 1600 meter dash to start, the Raiders won archery (when Dawkins shot a guy in the foot), the Profits won the flip cup (so Ivar broke the table), the Raiders won sword fighting when Ford forfeited, the Profits won the hurdles (resulting in an argument over whether you’re supposed to run through or jump over the hurdles), the Raiders won stick fighting, the Profits won a dance off (with Ford dancing to Sexy Boy and Ivar to Fandango’s theme), the Profits won the shot put, the Raiders won turkey leg eating and the Raiders won the pole vault, meaning it’s a 5-5 tie. My head hurts again.

Here’s Apollo Crews for a chat. He’s ready to defend the US Title against the winner of the following match.

Kevin Owens vs. Andrade vs. Angel Garza

Owens jumps the other two on the way to the ring and the fight is on in a hurry before the bell. We come back from a break with Owens being double teamed and the argument over who gets to pin him. Garza stops to TAKE OFF HIS PANTS, allowing Owens to roll Andrade up for two. Owens fights out of another double team but gets his throat snapped across the rope. A dropkick to the back of the head stops Owens again and it’s Andrade cranking on both arms. The chinlock goes on and Garza grabs the leg at the same time. Joe: “That’s the most violent Pilates session I’ve ever seen.”

A double suplex gives Andrade two but the fight is on when Garza makes the save. Zelina tries to break up the fight on the floor but she gets knocked down as we take a break. Back with Owens breaking up a superplex attempt from Garza and hitting the Swanton for two. Andrade jumps on Owens’ back so he drops down onto Garza for the crash. The Cannonball hits Garza but misses Andrade, who hits the running knees in the corner to both of them.

Garza superkicks Andrade but gets superkicked by Owens, setting up the frog splash for two on Andrade. Garza’s missile dropkick puts Owens down so it’s a strike off between Garza and Andrade. The two of them head outside, leaving Owens to hit a big running flip dive. Back in and Garza dropkicks Owens in the leg and grabs a leglock. The rope is grabbed and Owens hits the Stunner, only to have Andrade come in and steal the pin at 12:49.

Rating: C+. I was surprised by the ending and while I don’t exactly care to see Apollo vs. Andrade again, it wasn’t the way I expected the match to go. Just getting Crews a title defense on pay per view is a good idea, though I’m not sure if he is going to be retaining. This story isn’t all that interesting, but it’s better than having the title sit on the shelf for months at a time.

We look back at the opening segment and match.

Charlotte says she didn’t lose the NXT Women’s Title last night and she doesn’t like Asuka stealing her moment. Asuka dances in with the title, singing about being a champion. Charlotte asks if she takes anything seriously and gets slapped down.

Zelina is mad at Andrade and Garza.

Kurt Angle joins us to read cue cards (you can see his eyes going back and forth) to talk about how important chemistry is to a great match. He picks Edge to win on Sunday.

Drew McIntyre is thinking about joining the Vikings and invites them to a celebration after the show tonight. There will be meat and turkey legs, but Erik tells Ivar to focus.

Here’s MVP for the VIP Lounge. He talks about his guest being great and having the most devastating finishing move in WWE so here’s Drew McIntyre. Drew talks about them being friends, even though MVP might have had something to do with last week’s full nelson. MVP says they’re not friends and that Bobby Lashley is the real guest. See, MVP is here to make Lashley reach his potential as World Champion. Drew asks about all of MVP’s World Titles and offers to count down to the Claymore but Lashley runs in. Cue the Viking Raiders for a scheduled tag match, with the Street Profits joining them.

Viking Raiders vs. MVP/Bobby Lashley

Drew and the Profits are at ringside. Lashley hits a quick Downward Spiral to Ivar but some knees to the ribs get him out of trouble. It’s off to Erik for a knee to MVP as Lana is watching in the back. Ivar slams Erick onto MVP so Lashley comes in to run Erik over. MVP adds a chinlock but quickly hands it back to Lashley to hammer away.

Erik punches his way to freedom though and it’s back to Ivar to clean house. Everything breaks down with MVP and Lashley yelling at the Profits, leaving Ivar to dive onto both of them as we take a break. Back with the Vikings beating Lashley up some more, including an armbar from Ivar.

We cut to an interview with Lana, who talks about how she needs to work on her marriage. Back to full screen with MVP working over Ivar, who flips over MVP’s back to make the hot tag to Erik. Lashley gets sent outside, where he stares at McIntyre and then spears Ivar. Back in and the full nelson makes Erik tap at 15:10.

Rating: C. The action was good and it makes Lashley look like a monster to make someone like Erik tap. That being said, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, I hope they wait a bit before doing the Raiders vs. the Profits again. Lashley came off great here as the Raiders are big but he’s better. Good booking, assuming they don’t have the Raiders shrug it off and go for the titles immediately.

Post match Ivar punches MVP and gets full nelsoned as well. The Street Profits can’t break it up, but the Claymore certainly can.

Charlotte vs. Asuka

Non-title and here are Banks and Bayley to join commentary. Charlotte kicks Asuka in the face and then takes her down by the leg. They head outside with Asuka being thrown over the commentary table as we take a break. Back with Asuka still in trouble on the floor and not being able to hit the hip attack inside. She can however something like the Octopus but Charlotte is out in a hurry with a running kick to the head for two.

The IIconics are watching from the crowd as Charlotte cranks on both arms at once. Charlotte knees her to the floor but misses a baseball slide. Instead Asuka hits a dragon screw legwhip over the middle rope and now the hip attack hits against the barricade. Charlotte sends her into the barricade for a clothesline though, followed by some bare kneedrops. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Asuka gets two off a small package.

Charlotte’s clothesline gets the same and it’s out to the floor again. The baseball slide drops Asuka but she unloads with kicks to Charlotte’s leg. Back in and Charlotte boots Asuka off the top as the IIconics jump Banks and Bayley. We take another break with the other four gone and Asuka hip attacking Charlotte. The cross armbreaker has Charlotte in trouble but she powers out and knocks Asuka into the chinlock.

Asuka fights up so Charlotte knees her back down, only to have Asuka get in another shot. The middle rope dropkick sets up a German suplex to send Charlotte into the corner. That means more kicks to the back and it’s a hip attack to put Charlotte outside. They fight to the apron with Charlotte hitting a big boot, setting up a moonsault off the barricade. Asuka’s leg is wrapped around the post but she’s able to pull Charlotte face first into the post as well.

Back in and another big boot gives Charlotte another two but Asuka counters the spear with a heck of a knee to the face. The Asuka Lock is countered with a rollup for two so Asuka rolls her into something like a Koji Clutch. That’s broken up but here’s Nia Jax for a distraction, allowing Charlotte to hit another big boot for the pin at 27:12.

Rating: B. They beat each other up as always and I can go for the idea of Asuka having someone she can’t beat, but another interference to set up the finish wasn’t quite the way I wanted to see it go. No it wasn’t a clean loss, but it feels like Asuka is someone who has been fighting from underneath since the day she won the title. That gets a little annoying and having Charlotte get the win again doesn’t make it any better.

Post match Jax Samoan drops Asuka to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Yes, Charlotte did just open and close the show with wins over the Raw Women’s Champion, the Smackdown Women’s Champion and the Women’s Tag Team Champions. Why are you surprised at this point? The show was pretty solid overall with some good wrestling and a build towards Backlash that was needed. I’m not overly excited for a lot of the show, but the main event looks good and there are a few other things that could help boost it up. This show helped get us there, but 45 minutes of Charlotte is a lot not matter what.

Results

Charlotte/Asuka b. IIconics and Sasha Banks/Bayley – Asuka Lock to Kay

Humberto Carrillo/Aleister Black b. Austin Theory/Murphy – Kick to Murphy’s head

Andrade b. Angel Garza and Kevin Owens – Stunner to Garza

Bobby Lashley/MVP b. Viking Raiders – Full nelson to Erik

Charlotte b. Asuka – Big boot

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 25, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Samoa Joe

It’s Memorial Day and that means the tributes will be strong this week. We’re also on the road to Backlash and I’m not sure what that is going to mean. We do at least already have a World Title match with Drew McIntyre defending against Bobby Lashley. Odds are we get more gaming hijinks between the Street Profits and the Viking Raiders. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a long Memorial Day video.

Opening sequence.

There are NXT wrestlers around the stage to act as a makeshift audience. We have some Plexiglas around ringside, making it feel almost like a hockey arena. It took long enough.

We start with the Kevin Owens Show and he likes having the fans around here too. Owens brings out Asuka as his guest and that means a quick plug for the Man/Mom shirt. Owens: “Now available at WWEshop.com”. We see clips from last week of Nia Jax attacking Kairi Sane but getting taken out. Before we can see where that goes, here’s Charlotte to say that she’s winning the #1 contenders match tonight and beating Asuka, as she always does.

Now it’s Natalya (who is in the #1 contenders match also, because Shayna Baszler beating her twice in a row has already been forgotten), who apologizes for last week’s tantrum. Charlotte says that’s not going to help her win but here’s Nia Jax (also in the #1 contenders match) to interrupt. Owens: “I can see where this is going.” He leaves, which Nia says is a good idea. Nia promises to win and Owens says Asuka is about to hit her in the face. The brawl is on and Asuka clears the ring.

Apollo Crews promises to win the US Title.

US Title: Apollo Crews vs. Andrade

Andrade is defending and has Zelina Vega with him. Crews slams him down to start and drives Andrade into the corner without much effort. The spinning elbow gives Andrade two but he knocks Vega off the apron by mistake. Back from a break with Crews posting him and working on an armbar but Crews sends him into the corner for a Stinger Splash.

A superplex attempt is countered into an Alberto double stomp for two and we cut to Angel Garza in the back. He talks to Kayla Braxton and compares wrestling to making love to a beautiful woman. We get some rather detailed comparisons and Braxton certainly seems interested. Back with the toss powerbomb being countered into a hurricanrana in the corner. Andrade hits the running knees for two but Crews is back with the gorilla press into the standing shooting star press for the pin and the title at 8:21.

Rating: C. What we saw was good enough at least as there was a break and then the interview with Garza so there was only so much going on here. Crews winning wasn’t the biggest surprise but there was no reason to keep the title on Andrade. He has been champion for nearly five months now and it’s not like he has done much as champion. Just move on and let us see what Crews can do. It’s not like the title can lose much more value.

Post match Crews says it was a long time coming and now it is all worth it.

Andrade throws a fit in the back.

Seth Rollins is holding Rey Mysterio’s mask and is very happy to be better than ever. Mysterio was the sacrifice that he needed and Rollins couldn’t be more pleased with the pain that Mysterio had to endure. If that was Mysterio’s final act as a WWE star, it allowed them to move into the future. Murphy and Austin Theory come in so Rollins can say they understand what it is is like to be underappreciated. They needed guidance and now their ceiling is limitless. Both of them offer praise to Rollins and are ready to move forward.

Charlotte is ready to become a dual champion and no one else compares. Asuka comes in and dances around with the title before speaking in Japanese.

Here are the IIconics for a chat. They apologize for their issues last week and talk about wanting to be the Women’s Tag Team Champions again. Their first title reign was ignored because WWE never let them defend the titles but here are Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross. The IIconics don’t think much of them and tell Cross to go play, sending Cross into a rant about how she grew up in Scotland and worked every day to get here. Now she and Lexi are champions because Lexi has kept her from bouncing off the wall. Cross has taught her about friendship and that’s iconic. The fight is on and the IIconics stand tall and hold up the titles.

Lana comes up to MVP and says they need to talk. MVP: “No we don’t.”

It’s time for the VIP Lounge with MVP talking about how no one can offer this kind of star power. His guest this week is Drew McIntyre, who is soon to be the former WWE Champion. Drew wastes no time in asking where Bobby Lashley is but MVP says don’t worry because we’ll save that for Backlash. MVP remembers taking a Claymore kick and he knew McIntyre would win the WWE Title, but MVP would have a hand in him losing it.

Lashley has a title shot after thirteen years, but Drew took nineteen years to get here. Then he was in the main event of WrestleMania and beat Brock Lesnar in five minutes. Drew doesn’t need anyone talking or fighting for him and Lashley is going to have to pry the title from his cold dead hands. MVP: “That could be arranged.” Cue Lashley so Drew Claymores MVP just in case. McIntyre is ready for him and tells Lashley to get in. The half conscious MVP holds Lashley back and gets him up the ramp.

Natalya can’t answer a question because she gets a phone call from her husband. She apologizes for not apologizing enough earlier and has to go for her match later. Now she’s out of time on the interview. Ok then.

Kevin Owens vs. Angel Garza

Garza chop blocks him during the introduction and we take a break. Back with the bell ringing and Garza going right after the knee. The leg is sent into the corner and wrapped around the rope, setting up an early leglock. Owens makes the rope and grabs the DDT. The comeback is on but the leg gives out before the Cannonball. A superkick gives Garza two but Owens elbows him off the top. The Swanton gets two on Angel only to have the knee gives out on the Pop Up Powerbomb attempt. Garza hits the Wing Clipper for the win at 3:31.

Rating: C-. This didn’t have the time to go very far and I’m a little surprised that Garza go the win in Owens’ first match back. They did something smart by having Owens come in hurt though and that takes away some of the sting of the loss. I’m not sure where this goes but it’s a different kind of idea.

We recap the Street Profits vs. the Viking Raiders in various challenges.

This week, it’s time to play golf. The Profits are decent but the Raiders just cause chaos, including leaving turkey legs everywhere and wrecking general havoc. Therefore, let’s try some mini golf. Again, the Profits are a little better and the Raiders get in trouble. The final score is 144-28 in favor of the Profits, though only after they explain that the low screw wins in golf. That makes the score 2-1 (and yes there is a scoreboard). Ivar reaches into the final hole and pulls out a red solo cup and a turkey leg, but he stops to stare down an alligator. This has to be the dumbest thing they do this year. It has to be, right?

Lana offers MVP some ice for his face but MVP yells at her, saying that Lashley’s career is finally going somewhere. Lana needs to send McIntyre a message saying that they are going to take care of things.

Humberto Carrillo/Aleister Black vs. Murphy/Austin Theory

Seth Rollins is here with Murphy and Theory. Carrillo starts fast with the springboard armdrag to the floor (going up with Theory to start and then diving over to armdrag Murphy in a cool switch), setting up the big dive to take them both out. Back in and Black fires off the kicks to Theory and it’s already back to Carrillo to start on the arm. Carrillo has to hit an enziguri to cut off Murphy’s comeback so it’s back to black. That means a bunch of kicks, including causing Murphy to kick Theory down. Theory’s rollup with trunks only gets two but Carrillo misses the moonsault to Theory. The ATL finishes Carrillo at 4:20.

Rating: C+. It was short but it was almost all action the entire time and that’s the best thing they could have done. Theory should have gotten the fall here like he did because there is no reason to set up the new stable and then have him lose, even if his team doesn’t win the fall. This was as good as they were going to get in such a time and it worked rather well.

Post match Carrillo is puled outside and Rollins has his goons tease sending him eye first into the steps. Black is told to back off instead of fight for Mysterio and drops the chair, causing Rollins to throw Carrillo down so the villains can leave.

Edge talks about how Randy Orton woke him up last week. Now he has to prove that he still has it, which he has learned over the years from people like Kurt Angle, Mr. Perfect, British Bulldog, Eddie Guerrero and Christian. He was a five tool workhorse for this company but everything he said was in the past tense. Maybe he can’t do those things anymore but he’s going to dig into his soul at Backlash because that’s all a man can do.

The Viking Raiders tell the Street Profits that they let them win at golf. Ivar says he had many birdies, meaning turkey legs. Either way, the Raiders can pick the next challenge and go with bowling. The Vikings leave but MVP and Lashley come up to say this is another example of talent being wasted. The Profits ask how MVP’s jaw is feeling so it’s a tag match later tonight.

Charlotte vs. Nia Jax vs. Natalya

For the #1 contendership and Asuka is on commentary, where she really doesn’t seem impressed with Jax. Charlotte drops Natalya to start but Jax drives her into the corner for the shoulders to the ribs. Some double teaming staggers Jax and send her into the post for a trip to the floor. That leaves Charlotte to nip out of Natalya’s headscissors and grab one of her own.

Jax is knocked off the apron again so Charlotte shoulders Natalya from the apron. It’s time to load up the announcers’ table and Jax pulls Natalya to the floor as well. Charlotte and Jax fight over the table top and then Charlotte chops her on the apron. There’s the double powerbomb through the table to crush Jax, leaving Asuka stunned as we take a break. Back with Natalya hammering away on Jax in the ring as Asuka is rather pleased.

Charlotte comes in to replace Natalya and the moonsault gets two on Jax. All three are in again and Jax clotheslines both of them down, setting up a double splash in the corner. Natalya gets sent outside again and Charlotte starts in on the knee. The Figure Eight goes on but Natalya makes the save. There’s the Sharpshooter to Charlotte but Jax makes another save.

Natalya is sent outside again (yes again) so Charlotte kicks Jax in the face, only to have to knock Natalya off the apron one more time. Jax catches Charlotte on top with a superplex but Natalya turns it into a Tower of Doom. Charlotte doesn’t exactly get elevated enough and takes a pretty nasty landing. Jax has to break up the Figure Eight with a legdrop to Charlotte and the Samoan drop to Natalya sends Jax to Backlash at 15:13.

Rating: B-. Even if Jax was a pretty obvious winner here, they did a nice job of making you wonder if that was where they were really going. Jax vs. Asuka should be a good power vs. striker match and that could make for a solid first title defense. The lack of Baszler is interesting here though and makes me think she’s lurking for the winner.

Drew McIntyre is ready for the main event and Backlash.

We look back at Rob Gronkowski winning the 24/7 Title at Wrestlemania.

R-Truth promises to win the title back and will tackle any football player to win the title. He can’t remember Gronkowski’s name and puts on some children’s shoulder pads.

Gronkowski says bring it on and says 24/7 Gronk is the present. He grew up with four brothers and knows how to fight anywhere anytime. The sunglasses go on backwards, because he has eyes in the back of his head.

MVP and Lashley are ready for the main event.

Ric Flair picks Randy Orton to beat Edge at Backlash.

We look at part three of the Undertaker documentary, featuring the Shawn Michaels rivalry.

Liv Morgan talks about wondering what life had in store for her since she was six years old. Then she found WWE and knew she belonged here. She is alive and will fulfill who she is destined to be because she is living her best life.

Next week: Aleister Black vs. Seth Rollins and Rey Mysterio’s retirement ceremony.

Street Profits vs. MVP/Bobby Lashley

Non-title. Ford jumps away from Lashley to start but eventually gets sent into the corner so MVP can stomp away. It’s already back to Lashley for a delayed suplex but Ford slips out and brings in Dawkins. The double dropkick takes Lashley down but he knocks Ford hard into the barricade to take over. Ford gets posted as well and we take a break. Back with MVP handing it off to Lashley for more elbows in the corner.

Lashley stops to knock Dawkins out of the apron and then hits a side slam for two on Ford. MVP misses the running boot in the corner though and Ford dives over for the tag to Dawkins. House is cleaned, including a flapjack, which has to be saved by a camera cut. Everything breaks down and the Cash Out hits MVP but Lashley comes in for the full nelson on Ford. Lashley isn’t legal though and it’s a DQ at 11:31.

Rating: C-. The match was ok, though you can tell how much age has impacted MVP. He moves pretty slowly and while he is still very far away from looking horrible, this kind of limited action is the best thing that they can do with him at the moment. I was rather pleased that they didn’t have the Profits take a loss here, but my goodness the stuff with the Vikings has sucked the life out of them.

Post match here’s McIntyre for the brawl but since there is no security, some NXT wrestlers come in for the failed save. Lashley spears McIntyre down but the brawl continues. Even more wrestlers fail to break it up so here’s another batch to finally separate them to end the show. They’ve got something pretty good here with this feud as I want to see these two fight.

Overall Rating: C+. This is what I once dubbed the Raw Special. Had this been a two hour show, it would have been an excellent week, but instead they had that extra hour (not the third hour, but an extra hour throughout the show) that dragged it down. You could tell they were trying to come up with anything they could think of to fill in time and that became a problem. What we got was good, but they just had too much time to fill. Finally, yes the NXT wrestlers did help, but there’s only so much that they can add in a situation like this.

Results

Apollo Crews b. Andrade – Standing shooting star press

Angel Garza b. Kevin Owens – Wing Clipper

Murphy/Austin Theory b. Humberto Carrillo/Aleister Black – ATL to Carrillo

Nia Jax b. Natalya and Charlotte – Samoan drop to Natalya

Street Profits b. MVP/Bobby Lashley via DQ when Lashley would not let go of the full nelson

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

A tale of two ideas and one of them is good.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-jinder-mahal-austin-theory-theory/

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 27, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Samoa Joe, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips,

We’re coming up on Money in the Bank, meaning it is time for wrestlers to start building momentum by getting pins or submissions to build to a match that has nothing to do with pins or submissions. If nothing else, there’s a heck of a drinking game to be played regarding how many times commentary references climbing the corporate ladder. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We open with MVP’s VIP Lounge. MVP talks about how awesome Money in the Bank is going to be and brings out Rey Mysterio, Aleister Black (MVP: “Please don’t break anything.”) and Apollo Crews. Rey is asked what it means to be Mr. Money in the Bank but MVP won’t let him answer, saying that it’s just another great moment on an already legendary career. Black probably wants to be moved up to stardom. Crews actually gets to speak….for a few words as Zelina Vega and company cut him off.

Zelina laughs at the idea of any of the three of them winning Money in the Bank. The WWE Universe can’t get enough of the three of her people because they are the future. The three people in the ring were the future at one point but they would mean Mr. Money in the Bank is on Smackdown. What needs to happen is her three replacing these three, but Rey isn’t buying that. The brawl is on and Zelina’s guys are sent outside to get read for the upcoming six man.

Andrade/Angel Garza/Austin Theory vs. Rey Mysterio/Aleister Black/Apollo Crews

Hey look it’s the most obvious six man tag since the last time they set up an obvious six man tag. Black and Garza grapple on the mat to start with Black slipping away and grabbing an armbar. It’s off to Crews to armdrag Theory into another armbar, followed by Rey sending Theory into the corner. Andrade has to break up a double 619 to Garza and Theory so Rey sends him into the ropes for the 619 instead.

That doesn’t work either so Black and Crews hit big running flip dives over the top as we take a break. Back with Theory working on a reverse chinlock on Black and it’s Andrade coming in for some kicks tot he ribs. Theory is back with the front facelock and a torture rack to send Black into the corner. Black comes out with kicks to the face and a rolling victory roll for two but there’s no hot tag yet.

Another kick to the face rocks Theory though and it’s off to Rey to clean house. Garza tries to throw Rey at Andrade but it’s a hurricanrana to take Andrade down instead. A gutbuster drops Rey though and GARZA TAKES OFF HIS PANTS! Back from another break with Mysterio still in trouble in the corner, including a gorilla press drop from Theory.

Mysterio tornado DDTs his way to freedom and Crews gets the second hot tag to pick up the pace again. Crews powerslams Theory but Theory slams him down for two. The ATL is broken up and it’s Black coming back in to set up the parade of everyone knocking each other down. Andrade’s spinning back elbow gets two on Crews, but the toss powerbomb finishes Andrade at 24:26.

Rating: B-. This was long but didn’t get dull, which is a rarity for a match like this one. Crews getting the pin helps, though it isn’t going to matter much if he is dropped after the pay per view. Having him go after the US Title would be fine, as it’s not like the title has been anything of note now.

Didn’t get enough HHH praise on Smackdown? Well tonight it’s the Top Ten Moments of HHH’s Career! We’ll start with HHH taking over the leadership of DX the night after Wrestlemania XIV.

9. Beating Sting at Wrestlemania XXXI. It was one of the goofiest things I’ve ever seen and I loved every second of it, save for HHH winning and the post match handshake after a sledgehammer to the head.

Andrade is mad about the loss and blames his partners. Crews can’t beat him one on one. Andrade and Zelina leave when Crews comes in to say he can beat Andrade again, even if the second match is tonight. Andrade comes in and says bring it on. That means a HARD slap and the title match is set for tonight.

Video on Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre.

8. Beating the Rock in the first Smackdown main event.

7. Stephanie walks in on HHH and Trish Stratus. That still works.

Asuka vs. Nia Jax vs. Shayna Baszler

Before the match, Asuka yells about Nia injuring Kairi Sane and says that she tapped Nia out two years ago. Baszler pulls Asuka to the floor to start the beating in a hurry, including a whip into a barricade. Nia breaks that up and gets kicked in the head by both of them as we’re still waiting on the opening bell. Asuka sends Baszler into the steps but gets dropped HARD by Nia. Nia throws in a ladder and runs both of them over as the referee seems to have left rather than try to make this a match. Nia teases tossing a ladder onto the two of them but drops it down instead. No match.

Bobby Lashley asks Lana to stay in the back for the next match. She’s so beautiful and it’s a distraction you see.

Bobby Lashley vs. Denzel DeJournette

Lashley takes him down without much effort to start and it’s a trip to the corner for some forearms to the chest. Denzel gets in a shot to the face so that’s an ax handle to the back. A release suplex drops Denzel again sets up the spear for the pin at 1:43.

We look at Liv Morgan beating Ruby Riott last week.

Liv Morgan vs. Ruby Riott

Ruby trips her down to start but a headscissors out of the corner is reversed into a faceplant. The Riott Kick connects out of nowhere and Ruby is stunned by the kickout. Ruby stomps on her fingers and talks trash against the ropes but Liv is right back with the springboard Downward Spiral (Oblivion) for the pin at 2:55. Liv still has a long way to go but having her win matches is the first step.

Post match Liv says she is still trying to figure out who she is but she’s confident she can work it out.

6. Beating Mankind to win the 1997 King of the Ring.

Money in the Bank rundown.

Nia Jax isn’t worried about people not liking her and threatens Charly Caruso a bit. No one can do anything about what she does, including Asuka and Shayna Baszler.

The Viking Raiders are ready for the Street Profits and the Tag Team Titles. The Profits have never beaten then and that isn’t changing at Money in the Bank. As long as they are around, the Profits will always be second best. Prove them wrong.

5. The NXT Invasion in 2019. Couldn’t you just say NXT overall?

Jinder Mahal vs. Akira Tozawa

Mahal slams him down to start and takes Tozawa to the floor. Choking against the barricade and tosses into various things keep Tozawa down. Back in and a Samoa drop plants Tozawa and the Khallas gives Mahal the pin at 1:37. This was Mahal doing the same stuff with shorter hair.

Zelina isn’t happy with Charly for asking Andrade a question. Zelina and Andrade leave but here’s Garza to say he and Charly should get better acquainted. He even has a rose for her and the smile is on.

4. DX impersonates the McMahons. Some of these are a lot more questionable than others.

United States Title: Andrade vs. Apollo Crews

Crews is challenging and Vega is here with Andrade. Feeling out process to start with Andrade working on a wristlock. That’s reversed into an armbar as Vega isn’t looking pleased with the goings on. Crews’ front facelock doesn’t last long and it’s Andrade grabbing a headlock instead. They go to the floor for a bit, followed by Andrade taking him back inside to stomp away.

Some choking and a dropkick keep Crews in trouble but Andrade misses a running knee in the corner. That means a nasty crash to the floor but Andrade avoids a moonsault, causing Crews to tweak his knee as we take a break. Back with Andrade working on a half crab, only to miss the running knees in the corner. Crews hits an Angle Slam and they’re both down. An overhead belly to belly sends Andrade flying but he gets a boot up in the corner.

Crews is back with a press slam and the standing moonsault for two but Andrade is back with a whip into the corner. Now the running knees can connect for two as Vega is losing her mind. Crews blocks the spinning elbow but the gorilla press is countered into a DDT for two. The hammerlock DDT is countered into an enziguri and a powerslam gives Crews two of his own. Crews knocks Andrade off the top but misses a top rope splash and hurts the knee again. Andrade kicks him to the apron and the referee stops it at 16:45.

Rating: B-. I was surprised by the ending but this doesn’t feel like it’s over. Crews is someone who needs a major moment if he is ever going to break through and I’m not sure how much longer he can go without one. It’s not like Andrade has done anything with the title in four months, which is the case with almost anyone who holds it for almost any amount of time.

3. Evolution.

We look back at Crews vs. Andrade. More on this later.

The Street Profits don’t like what the Viking Raiders said. Last week the Profits were putting in work while the Raiders were doing Carpool Karaoke. It’s true though: the Profits have never beaten them. That can change next week.

We look at a clip of Becky Lynch’s 24 as she won the Raw Women’s Title last year at Wrestlemania. Everyone knows she is ready to be a star. Becky: “What do you do when all your dreams come true? Make up some new ones.” This feels about eight months late.

Cedric Alexander/Ricochet vs. Ever-Rise

Martel gets sent into Alexander’s knee to the ribs and it’s a running flip neckbreaker into a backbreaker for two. It’s off to Parker, who gets in an elbow to Ricochet’s back to take over. Ricochet fights out of a chinlock though and it’s off to Cedric to start cleaning house. Everything breaks down and Cedric hits a standing moonsault for two on Martel. Ricochet dropkicks Parker to the floor and it’s a top rope double stomp into a Downward Spiral to finish Parker at 4:08.

Rating: C-. Just a match here with Cedric and Ricochet looking fine in a short win. It’s fine to put them together for something to do, even though Ricochet should be a star on his own at the moment. I’ll take it over him doing nothing at all though and that’s what his alternative seems to be at the moment.

Post match MVP pops up on screen to introduce Brendan Vink and Shane Thorne. They want a rematch and MVP sees box office platinum. Cedric and Ricochet are fine with that.

2. The DX invasion. Good grief how many times do we need to see this same stupid clip?

Crews now has a wrap on his knee and is limping around on crutches. Charly comes up to say this probably hinders his progress. Crews starts crying and leaves without saying anything.

Another McIntyre vs. Rollins video.

1. The quad tear and return. If my memory serves me right, we saw almost all ten of these moments on Friday. We’re just lucky enough to see this collection twice you see.

Next week: Street Profits vs. Viking Raiders for the Tag Team Titles.

Jerry Lawler is in the ring to talk about Money in the Bank, including the Raw World Title match. Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre come out and McIntyre tells Lawler to leave for this. Lawler is out in a hurry and McIntyre signs without much thinking about it. Rollins doesn’t sign yet so McIntyre says time’s ticking.

That sends Rollins into a rant about how he doesn’t want to do this but has to. This is bigger than all of them and Drew will be a great champion one day. Rollins has to do this because he had to suffer for that title. He doesn’t want what happened to him to happen to Drew because it is his burden to carry. When that time comes, Rollins can lead Drew as well. Drew: “You’re full of s***.”

Drew tells him to stop talking forever because no one wants to hear Seth talk. Rollins says that the big picture will be clear at Money in the Bank and he signs. He goes to talk about having faith but Drew sends him face first into the table. The ring is cleared and a headbutt drops Seth so the Claymore is loaded up. Cue Murphy to kick McIntyre in the head, earning himself a hug from Rollins. McIntyre is back up and Claymores Murphy to end the show. This was the latest in WWE’s rather long string of contract signings, most of which aren’t all that interesting. That was the case here, but Rollins’ delivery did help.

Overall Rating: C. I liked this one more than recent weeks as they certainly have a focus going into the pay per view. That being said, it’s not the most interesting time in the world and waiting around to get to the ladder match can be a tedious few weeks. They had some nice stuff this week, but it would be nice to get done with the ladder match so we can get back to some more normal shows.

Results

Apollo Crews/Aleister Black/Rey Mysterio b. Andrade/Angel Garza/Austin Theory – Toss powerbomb to Andrade

Bobby Lashley b. Denzel DeJournette – Spear

Liv Morgan b. Ruby Riott – Oblivion

Jinder Mahal b. Akira Tozawa – Khallas

Andrade b. Apollo Crews via referee stoppage

Cedric Alexander/Ricochet b. Ever-Rise – Downward Spiral/Top rope double stomp combination to Parker

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 20, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Jerry Lawler

We’re firmly in Money in the Bank mode as we continue the long process of finding people to climb to the roof of a really tall building. You can’t say it’s the same thing we’ve seen over and over again so maybe we can have something unique here as well. I wouldn’t bet on it but it’s possible. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Drew McIntyre vs. Zelina Vega and company plus Seth Rollins last week.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Drew McIntyre for a chat. Drew talks about how everything went last week. The title means a lot of things to everyone and those things are cool. To him, it means a target on his back because it makes him the best of the best. McIntyre understands that it’s lonely at the top and that’s why Rollins attacked him last week. Now, Drew could make Seth jump through hoops, or he could challenge Seth for Money in the Bank.

Cue Vega and company to say they’re tired of his speeches. Drew is looking forward to Money in the Bank so he isn’t paying attention. Andrade jumps Drew from behind but gets Claymored. Angel Garza and Austin Theory won’t go in for the save so it’s another Claymore to put Andrade on the floor.

We get an explanation for the Money in the Bank ladder matches at Titan Towers (with NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte on the graphic rather than Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch).

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Austin Theory vs. Aleister Black

Zelina Vega is on commentary. Black spins out of a wristlock as Vega does not like the accusations of being overconfident. Theory gets thrown down but pops back up with a running shoulder. The threat of Black Mass sends Theory to the floor and Black dropkicks him through the ropes to make it even worse. Vega gets up and yells at Black for not letting Theory play fair.

The distraction lets Theory throw him into the barricade and we take a break. Back with Theory hitting a rolling dropkick and hammering away with left hands. Black fights out of a torture rack and runs Theory over for two. The ATL is countered as well and Black pulls him into a cross armbreaker.

That’s reversed with a powerbomb but Black strikes away. The moonsault press gets two but Theory’s superkick into a cradle brainbuster gets the same. Another ATL is countered so Black knees him in the face, setting up a German suplex for two more. Black Mass misses but the second attempt connects for the pin (and a great shocked face from Vega) at 11:45.

Rating: C+. It wasn’t a great match but it was better than usual from Theory. You can see all of the potential in him but it might take a little while to click. If nothing else, Vega is awesome on commentary and can hype people up with the best of them. Black winning isn’t a surprise here though and it was a fun match on the way.

Post match, Black promises to win the ladder match.

Shayna Baszler vs. Indi Hartwell

Shayna suplexes her down and goes for the arm but gets rolled up for two. That just ticks Shayna off so she hits another slam and stomps the arm for the stoppage at 1:00. Can you blame her for being mad? She spends years in NXT, gets called up, doesn’t win the Royal Rumble because Charlotte, doesn’t win the title at Wrestlemania because Becky, then gets to be on Raw, where the only change is she’s beating up NXT women at the Performance Center instead of Full Sail.

Post match Shayna grabs the ladder and crushes the arm against the steps.

Shane Thorne/Brendan Vink vs. Cedric Alexander/Ricochet

Ricochet gets thrown into the corner to start but rolls out with a dropkick to Vink. Some double teaming puts Vink down but Thorne breaks up a springboard. A clothesline drops Ricochet on the floor but it’s back to Cedric for a tornado DDT. Ricochet’s running shooting star gets two on Thorne and there’s another DDT to Vink. The Recoil into the Lumbar Check finishes Thorne at 3:14.

Rating: C-. Just a step above a squash here and that’s fine enough. Ricochet and Alexander continue to seem like little more than two people being thrown together and that’s not the best sign for their future. How that’s the best use WWE could find for Ricochet is beyond me, but at least it’s better than nothing.

The Kabuki Warriors shout a lot and insist that Kairi Sane is ready for a rematch.

Lana talks about how great Bobby Lashley is. Lashley is going to flip a tractor tire.

Nia Jax vs. Kairi Sane

Sane tries to dodge to start but gets knocked down for her efforts. The knee gives out on a powerbomb attempt so Sane hammers away to some avail. The Insane Elbow misses though and it’s a Samoan drop to give Jax the pin at 4:13.

Rating: D+. And so much for Sane again, as Jax shrugged off everything Sane through at her before winning. Jax is a good choice for a monster as there is only so much that can be done otherwise with her. I’ve liked her since she’s been back, though it hasn’t exactly been a long return so far.

Seth Rollins talks about how he knows what it’s like to be where Drew McIntyre is. We see various clips of the two of them doing the same things over their careers. Rollins will face McIntyre for the title at Money in the Bank because he has to.

The Viking Raiders do their version of Carpool Karaoke, which involves Ivar eating a drumstick, shouting VIKING RAIDERS over and over, and the line of “We worship Thor and we’ll knock him to the floor.” This was one of those so bizarre that it was half amazing and half terrible.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: MVP vs. Apollo Crews

Before the match, MVP talks about how he has to climb a ladder but first it’s a match with the extremely talented Apollo Crews. Black finally cuts him off and we’re ready to go. Crews doesn’t waste time in kicking MVP to the floor but a dive from the apron is broken up. Back from a break with MVP hitting a clothesline but getting suplexed into the corner.

Crews hammers away and hits a kick to the face, followed by a hard clothesline of his own. The frog splash hits knees and MVP’s Playmaker gets two. Crews is right back with an enziguri into a gorilla press. The standing moonsault into the standing shooting star sets up the toss powerbomb to finish MVP at 8:09.

Rating: C-. This was never in any serious doubt, though it was cool to see Crews turn on the jets to win in the end. MVP is fine for someone to put other people over and that’s fine, though it’s not like he was ever the biggest star in the world. Either way, they got the important part right so there isn’t much to complain about here.

Ruby Riott says there was never a Riott Squad because it was always her carrying the other two. Now Liv Morgan thinks she’s grown up and Ruby has to show her otherwise.

Liv Morgan vs. Ruby Riott

Ruby goes after her to start but Liv gets in some forearms and a dropkick for two. Liv gets draped over the top and kicked in the face, followed by another kick to the face to cut off a comeback bid. Ruby demands that Liv beg but it’s the springboard Flatliner out of nowhere to give Liv the pin at 3:19.

Rating: D. Well that was nothing. Riott hasn’t gotten to do anything since she has been back but at least they are trying something with Morgan. She’s gotten a lot better in recent months, though it’s not like she had anywhere else to go but up. The Riott Squad was never the most important team in the world, but at least they’re trying something with someone new.

Lashley flips a tire and then looks at a bigger one.

In Memory of Howard Finkel. An hour and forty five minutes into the show.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Rey Mysterio vs. Murphy

Rey headlocks him down to start and it’s an early standoff. Murphy takes over with an armbar but has to duck an early 619 attempt. Some forearms put Rey on the floor and Murphy drives him into the barricade. Back in and Murphy stays on the arm until Rey armdrags him to the floor.

That works fine for Murphy, who catches a dive and stomps on the arm on the ramp. Back from a break with Murphy still on the arm but Rey snaps off a hurricanrana on the floor. They get back in with Rey hitting a tornado DDT and heading to the apron again. A dropkick sends Murphy into the barricade but he’s right back with a spinning facebuster onto the knee. Murphy’s brainbuster gets two so he goes up top, only to get caught with a super Destroyer. The 619 into the frog splash finishes Murphy at 15:09.

Rating: C+. That was certainly a Money in the Bank qualifying match. They did moves to each other and Mysterio made the comeback win. During those fifteen minutes, we heard references to climbing the corporate ladder roughly 284 times because someone came up with that line and WWE has decided it’s the cleverest line in history.

Vega doesn’t know if McIntyre will make it to Money in the Bank. Garza hits on Charly Caruso, who seems impressed.

Charlotte vs. Kayden Carter

Non-title. Charlotte boots her in the face to start but Carter grabs a rollup for two. A crucifix into something like the Rings of Saturn keeps Charlotte down and Carter switches into the Octopus. That’s enough for Charlotte, who powers out and hits the spear, setting up the Figure Eight for the win at 2:42.

Lashley can’t flip the big tire so he kicks it and then flips it over. Lana comes back in to celebrate with him.

We recap the opening segment.

Andrade vs. Akira Tozawa

Zelina Vega is here with Andrade. Tozawa starts fast with a spinning kick to the head and a knee to the face gets two. A running kick to the face sends Andrade to the floor and Tozawa hits the big running flip dive off the apron. Back in and a missile dropkick gives Tozawa two but Vega offers a distraction so Andrade can run him over. Not that it matters as Tozawa slaps on the Octopus, sending Andrade to the ropes again. A heck of a back elbow to the face drops Tozawa but he grabs some rollups for two each. Tozawa heads up top but gets crotched down, setting up the hanging hammerlock DDT to give Andrade the pin at 4:52.

Rating: C+. This one came a bit out of nowhere and I was actually wondering if they were going to go with the upset. Tozawa is someone who can work with anyone and he was working hard here. I liked this one a good bit and even though Andrade never defends the title, it’s nice to see him sweat a bit here.

Post match Andrade and Vega celebrate but the Street Profits come out to interrupt.

Bianca Belair vs. Santana Garrett

The Profits, still dancing on the announcers’ table, introduce Belair for her in-ring Raw debut, and then sit in on commentary. Belair throws her down to start and then uses straight power to grab an over the shoulder backbreaker. Garrett gets in a shove to the face and is knocked down in a hurry.

Rating: C-. This was ALL about the Street Profits as they did not stop shouting, screaming and hyping up Belair the whole time. It was rather annoying but at the same time it’s as effective of an idea as I’ve seen in a good while as the Profits have so much energy and charisma that they’re awesome in this role. Belair won in little more than a squash, but it was all about the Profits.

Angel Garza vs. Drew McIntyre

Non-title and Vega and company are at ringside again. McIntyre goes straight for the knee to start and there’s the overhead belly to belly to send Garza rolling to the floor. Some chops against the barricade have Garza in trouble and Andrade’s posting fails. So does Garza’s suicide dive and McIntyre headbutts him, only to have to deal with Theory.

That allows Garza to hit a posting, followed by a missile dropkick for two back inside. McIntyre fights out of a half crab and kicks Garza in the face. Garza tries to escape so McIntyre PULLS OFF GARZA’S PANTS as Garza gets to the floor. The big flip dive connects and McIntyre takes out Andrade and Theory. Back in and the Claymore finishes Garza at 5:02.

Rating: C. This was an entertaining squash as McIntyre swatted Garza away like a fly. Even the rest of the team couldn’t do anything to slow him down and that’s what you should be doing with the champ. McIntyre looked awesome here and it showed how far ahead he is of Vega and company. It was a great showcase and that’s what it needed to be.

Post match McIntyre gives Garza another Claymore. Theory comes in and gets one of his own for good measure. McIntyre chases Andrade up the ramp and strikes the Tranquilo pose to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. I had forgotten how mind numbingly annoying Money in the Bank season is. They managed to get in “climb the corporate ladder” in about a million times and given that the show will feature the sixth ladder matches since the middle of December (seven if you count Reigns vs. Corbin’s street fight which they called a TLC match), it isn’t exactly something I’m going to get invested in over the next few weeks.

As for the rest of the show, it was a very wrestling heavy week, but nothing on here stood out. Maybe it was all of the ladder match hype but it was hard to get interested in a good chunk of it. They did a nice job of making McIntyre look like a star and that’s a great thing, though so much of the show felt like it came and go so they could add people to the ladder matches. It could have been a lot worse, but not much less exciting.

Results

Aleister Black b. Austin Theory – Black Mass

Shayna Baszler b. Indi Hartwell via referee stoppage

Cedric Alexander/Ricochet b. Shane Thorne/Brendan Vink – Lumbar Check to Thorne

Nia Jax b. Kairi Sane – Samoan drop

Apollo Crews b. MVP – Toss powerbomb

Rey Mysterio b. Murphy – Frog splash

Charlotte b. Kayden Carter – Figure Eight

Andrade b. Akira Tozawa – Hanging hammerlock DDT

Bianca Belair b. Santana Garrett – KOD

Drew McIntyre b. Angel Garza – Claymore

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 13, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Jerry Lawler

We’re still in Orlando and that seems to be because Vince McMahon is (possibly rightly) scared of the television networks and that means everything is going to be live going forward. I’m not sure what to expect this week but we’re on the road to Money in the Bank because that show will work in the Performance Center. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We look at a recap of Drew McIntyre winning the Raw World Title at Wrestlemania.

Here’s Drew for his first appearance on Raw as champion. Drew gets right in front of the camera and says thank you before talking about how the internet can be negative, but even there people have seemed to be positive. He won the title at Wrestlemania and then Big Show came out and wanted a title match then and there. We see a clip of the Big Show title match and Drew says anyone in the back can come get a shot.

Cue Zelina Vega and Andrade, with Zelina saying this is the real champion. She is sorry for cutting off his Braveheart rah rah speech but brings up their NXT Title match where McIntyre lost to Andrade. McIntyre says they can do title vs. title tonight so Andrade promises to win again.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Ruby Riott vs. Asuka

Asuka starts dancing a lot and then pulls on the arm. An armbar into a keylock sends Ruby bailing to the ropes so Asuka sends her shoulder first into the buckle. Choking on the ropes and the hip attack put Riott on the floor and that means the sliding knee to the face. Ruby manages to send her over the barricade but Asuka gets in a kick to the head. Some dancing takes us to a break and we come back with Riott kicking Asuka to the floor for two back inside.

Back up and Asuka kicks her down again, setting up the cross armbreaker. That’s broken up so Ruby tries the Riott Kick, only to get suplexed down. A Shining Wizard gives Asuka two more so Riott hits a running clothesline to the back of the head for the same. Ruby goes up but dives into the Asuka Lock, which is countered into a rollup for two and the break. A Flatliner into the Rings of Saturn with kicks to the face has Asuka in trouble but she reverses into the Asuka Lock at 13:03.

Rating: C+. They were hitting each other rather hard but I couldn’t get all the way into it. Riott hasn’t done anything since coming back and that’s understandable but she seems to be spinning her wheels more often than not. Asuka going on to Money in the Bank is fine, even if it seems to be Shayna Baszler’s to win ala the Elimination Chamber.

MVP is in the VIP Lounge in the back and explains that next week we will have three Money in the Bank qualifying matches. Next week it’s Rey Mysterio vs. Murphy, Aleister Black vs. Austin Theory and Apollo Crews vs. MVP.

Aleister Black vs. Oney Lorcan

Lorcan grabs a waistlock to start so Black is quickly out with a waistlock. Black moonsaults over Lorcan and we take a break. Back with Black avoiding the half and half suplex but getting hit in the face for two. A full nelson keeps Black in trouble but he pulls Lorcan into a triangle choke. That’s broken up as well so Black kicks him in the face, setting up Black Mass for the pin at 9:36.

Rating: C-. I can go with them giving Black some higher competition here and there and it’s nice to see him likely get into the Money in the Bank match next week. He needs to have something to do and while going after Andrade could work, I’m not sure if that’s big enough for him at the moment.

We look back at Becky Lynch retaining at Wrestlemania.

Here’s Becky for a chat. Becky talks about getting in Shayna Baszler’s head and how she isn’t going to be messed with like she messes with everyone else. She’s here to challenge the woman in Money in the Bank who wants it most. Whoever thinks they can beat her, she’ll shock the world.

Andrade and Zelina Vega are ready to show what a real dominant title reign is.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Sarah Logan vs. Shayna Baszler

Baszler takes her down and hammers away MMA style until the referee drags her off. Baszler stomps on the arm and the referee stops it at 52 seconds.

Post match Baszler is ticked off and storms to the back through the seats instead of through the ring.

A stoic Seth Rollins talks about his career being crucified.

Austin Theory vs. Akira Tozawa

Zelina Vega is on commentary. Tozawa kicks him into the corner to start but gets dropped onto the top turnbuckle, complete with about five camera cuts. The chinlock goes on for a bit and Theory sends him into the corner for two. An armbar sets up a snap suplex for two on Tozawa and we’re right back into the chinlock.

Tozawa fights up and kicks Theory to the floor, setting up the big flip dive off the apron and Theory is in trouble. Lawler: “Like a Ramen Noodle moonsault.” Back in and a missile dropkick gets two on Theory and the Octopus goes on. That’s countered into the ATL (TKO) to finish Tozawa at 7:12.

Rating: D+. It’s pretty clear that they want Theory to be something special so why in the world are they having him trade moves with Akira Tozawa? It’s ok to have Theory get in a squash here and having him wrestle for seven minutes while having to survive so much offense from a jobber to the stars doesn’t make a lot of sense. Theory’s time on offense wasn’t even that great as a good chunk of it was spent in chinlocks or armbars. Just a bad idea all around.

Post match it’s the rest of Vega’s team to triple team Tozawa.

We look at a clip from Drew McIntyre’s Chronicle special on his way to the main event of Wrestlemania.

Rey Mysterio wants to be Mr. Money in the Bank. He has been cashed in on before but now he’s going to be the one cashing in.

Angel Garza vs. Tehuti Miles

Miles tries a dropkick to start but Garza dropkicks him out of the air in a cool spot. Garza TAKES OFF HIS PANTS and hits a basement dropkick, followed by some Spanish into the camera. A seated abdominal stretch goes on, followed by a kick to the chest and the Wing Clipper to finish Miles at 2:29.

Post match Vega sends out Theory and Andrade for another beatdown, including another hammerlock DDT out of the corner.

The Kabuki Warriors dance in and laugh at the idea of anyone else winning Money in the Bank.

Drew McIntyre looks down at a scar on his arm left by a surgery after his title loss to Andrade. Tonight, it’s a Claymore.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Kairi Sane vs. Nia Jax

Sane gets thrown around to start as Asuka is VERY excited in the back. Back to full screen and it’s a clothesline into a toss around by the hair. A gorilla press into a Samoan drop (the Annihilator) finishes Sane at 2:36. Total squash.

Here’s Charlotte to talk about how she got here as NXT Women’s Champion. She (referring to herself as the Queen) won the Women’s Royal Rumble and got to choose an opponent. We’ve seen her vs. Becky Lynch and her vs. Bayley over and over but it was Rhea Ripley coming to the ring and challenging her. That took guts and it reminded her of someone she knows.

Rhea was the next big thing but Charlotte is the biggest thing. Vince McMahon knew that last year when he had her save the main event of Wrestlemania. There is always going to be someone stronger, faster and better and she is going to teach that to NXT, starting with Io Shirai. Everyone bows down to the Queen.

We look at Lana costing Bobby Lashley his match against Aleister Black at Wrestlemania. After the show, Lashley said he thought he needed new management or a new wife.

We look at Shayna Baszler injuring Sarah Logan earlier.

Bobby Lashley vs. No Way Jose

Lashley elbows him in the face as Lana screams a lot from ringside. With Jose down, Lashley goes outside and asks Lana to shut up. Jose gets in a right hand but walks into an overhead belly to belly. A spinebuster sets up the spear to finish Jose at 2:46.

Rollins says the non-believers have left him no choice. Tonight, he stomps out all doubt.

Viking Raiders vs. Cedric Alexander/Ricochet

Ricochet starts fast and hits a dive to the floor, followed by a tornado DDT from Cedric back inside. We settle down to Erik getting caught in a front facelock but he rolls to the floor for a breather. Alexander misses a dive so Erik runs back in for the tag to Ivar. That means Ricochet is thrown at Cedric in a SCARY landing but Ivar dives onto both of them anyway as we take a break.

Back with Alexander taking a bunch of knees to the face, plus Erik slamming Ivar onto him for two. Alexander scores with a cartwheel into a dropkick and a jumping Flatliner really gives him a breather. It’s off to Ricochet to clean house, including a running shooting star press for two on Erik. The Neuralizer misses though and Erik knees Ricochet in the face. Ivar comes back in with the seated senton and Erik drives him into Cedric in the corner for two.

The belly to back suplex/middle rope springboard clothesline gets two with Ricochet having to make a save. That earns him a spinning kick to the face and a completely botched Viking Experience (almost a pop up World’s Strongest Slam instead of a powerslam) finishes Cedric at 13:46.

Rating: D+. This was a rough sit with the Raiders throwing the two of them all over the place and looking a bit sloppy at times. I’m fine with the Raiders winning but they can’t let that finish happen again. It wasn’t a strong performance from anyone and I wasn’t exactly interested in what they were doing in the first place.

The Street Profits officially introduce Bianca Belair and then give a history lesson on vikings. That gets two thumbs up but Bianca says nu uh because they have never beaten the Raiders. Now stop with the games and get that smoke.

Drew McIntyre vs. Andrade

Non-title and Andrade has everyone with him. McIntyre starts stomping away in the corner early on and even catches Andrade with a kick to the chest for trying to jump over him. They head outside with Andrade bouncing on top of the barricade. A Garza distraction lets Andrade pull him into the post though and the chops are on. McIntyre’s arm is sent into the steps and it’s an armbar back inside.

The armbar over the rope keeps McIntyre in trouble and a shot to the arm breaks up a suplex attempt. McIntyre boots him in the face though and hits a top rope shot to the head into a nip up. A spinning back elbow rocks McIntyre but he’s fine enough to backdrop Andrade onto Theory and Garza. Back in and Vega’s distraction lets Andrade crotch him on top but McIntyre escapes the hanging DDT. There’s the reverse Alabama Slam into the Claymore for the pin on Andrade at 5:31.

Rating: C. Not too bad here though I kept waiting on Rollins to interfere and cost McIntyre the match. I wouldn’t have had the US Champion get pinned when he had a big numbers advantage but that title being protected is a long forgotten hope. McIntyre picking up another win is a good thing though as he can mow people down to become the new dominant force around here.

Post match Garza chop blocks McIntyre and here’s Seth Rollins to superkick the champ. A pair of Stomps to McIntyre ends the show.

Overall Rating: D. For the first time in a good while, this show felt like a chore to watch. They’ve had some rough weeks as of late but this was a much harder watch. Maybe it’s the Money in the Bank stuff that always dulls my senses or something else but I didn’t care about most of what they were doing here and the show felt every bit of its three hours. There have been worse shows but this one was exhausting on every level.

Results

Asuka b. Ruby Riott – Asuka Lock

Aleister Black b. Oney Lorcan – Black Mass

Shayna Baszler b. Sarah Logan via referee stoppage

Austin Theory b. Akira Tozawa – ATL

Angel Garza b. Tehuti Miles – Wing Clipper

Nia Jax b. Kairi Sane – Annihilator

Bobby Lashley b. No Way Jose – Spear

Viking Raiders b. Ricochet/Cedric Alexander – Viking Experience to Alexander

Drew McIntyre b. Andrade – Claymore

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: April 9, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

It’s a special week around here as we have the post Wrestlemania edition of the show. That likely means a lot of explaining about how big Wrestlemania was, which doesn’t exactly live up to the hype since it’s being held in the same arena as this show. There were some big moments over the week though so maybe we’ve got something here. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Natalya vs. Aliyah

Natalya headlocks her down to start so Aliyah bails over to the ropes. Hold on though as Aliyah needs to fan herself off and shake hands with Natalya, who takes her down by the hand and stomps on the fingers. The basement dropkick puts Aliyah on the floor but she comes back in with a right hand to the face. That means a lot of shouting as Natalya gets stomped down in the corner. The abdominal stretch keeps Natalya in trouble until Aliyah lets go and misses a big boot in the corner. Now the Sharpshooter can go on for the tap at 5:18.

Rating: D. I’ve always liked Aliyah but this was every boring Natalya match I’ve ever seen. She’s always fine from a technical standpoint but egads there is nothing beyond that and never has been. It’s the same match that you’ve seen so many times and watching something just a step away from a squash isn’t exactly good stuff.

Video on the Boneyard match.

Video on Edge vs. Randy Orton’s Last Man Standing match.

Video on Becky Lynch vs. Shayna Baszler.

Video on Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte.

Austin Theory vs. Shane Thorne

Thorne headlocks him to the mat to start so Theory forearms him away without much trouble. Theory goes after the leg and then the arm, followed by a dropkick to the floor. Back from a break with Thorne having to fight out of an armbar and hitting a Cannonball in the corner.

A Falcon Arrow gets two but Theory buckle bombs him into the leg trap brainbuster onto the knee. They slug it out and trade kicks to the head/ribs in a big strike off. Theory gets the better of it though and grabs a quick TKO to put Thorne away at 10:18.

Rating: C. This was better with both guys looking like they were putting in the extra effort due to being on a….well this isn’t a bigger stage than NXT but it’s certainly something different, and that could be something that gets someone new looking at them. Theory seems to be the next prospect around here, but since the idea of using developmental to develop people seems to have a very limited shelf life, here he is, probably too early.

Video on Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens.

Video on Drew McIntyre vs. Brock Lesnar.

From Raw.

We get some post Wrestlemania footage of McIntyre coming back into the arena wearing the title for an interview. Drew talks about how he can’t believe that he got here and it hasn’t sunk in yet. He thanks everyone who has gotten him here, including Paul Heyman. During the match with Brock Lesnar, Heyman said keep giving Drew the F5 because he can’t keep getting back up.

That made Drew think about all the times he has had to get back up so the F5’s just angered him over and over again. Now he’s WWE Champion….and here’s the Big Show with a referee. Show congratulates him and wants a match right now, not even for the title. Drew says he just beat Brock Lesnar so that’s not happening right now. Show thinks that’s fear but Drew knows what’s going on. That earns him a slap so Drew is ready to go.

Raw World Title: Drew McIntyre vs. Big Show

McIntyre is defending. Show starts fast and slams him down to bang up the ribs a bit. A headbutt cuts the champ off and a Vader Bomb gets two. There’s another slam to work on the ribs even more and Show chokes on the ropes while asking what Drew is made of. The big chop misses and Drew swings away, setting up a slam for two in a good looking spot. Drew goes up top and dives into a chokeslam for two. The KO Punch misses though and it’s the Claymore to retain at 6:57.

Rating: D+. A competitive match here is fine but my goodness they had me worried that they would actually do something this bad. The match was the usual slow and plodding Big Show deal but at least they didn’t pull the trigger for the sake of promoting Big Show’s Netflix series. Points for the drama, but negative points for making me think about the possibility.

Overall Rating: D. Nothing to see here, though Theory vs. Thorne was better than I would have bet on. This was mainly a bunch of Wrestlemania recap videos and the show wasn’t all that great in the first place. Main Event has someone become even less important in this era of WWE and while I get why it needs to exist, I’m not sure how much less interesting it can actually get.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: World Wrestling Network

Evolve 125
Date: April 4, 2019
Location: La Boom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Lenny Leonard, Rob Niemi

This is another one of the shows that I was hoping to see last year but for one reason or another it never happened. That’s where a free month of Club WWN (plus the company putting the show up for free on YouTube) can be handy and that’s why I’m here today. This show seemed to be pretty well received so hopefully it holds up. Let’s get to it.

As usual, I have no idea what is coming or what is going on here so bare with me if I miss a plot point.

The commentators/hosts are in the ring to welcome us to the show. They run down the card, just in case someone wandered in here off the street thinking it was a store that sold farmer’s almanacs. Cue Adrian Jaoude (also of NXT) to interrupt, saying he’s here to fight.

Harlem Bravado vs. Adrian Jaoude

Jaoude takes him down with ease to start and Bravado bails to the rope in a hurry. Bravado stomps away instead and hits a leg trap suplex for two. The chinlock keeps Jaoude down and it’s a Death Valley Driver to give Bravado two more. Bravado starts talking trash though and gets his fingers snapped back. The hand gets slammed down onto the mat and a hard German suplex drops Bravado. A spinning kick to the face makes it even worse, followed by a quick kneebar to make Bravado tap at 5:00.

Rating: C-. Just a quick match to get things going and Jaoude looked good as the monster who can take you apart with the martial arts skills. I’ve liked his stuff in NXT and while Bravado looked fine, they made a big deal out of his start and stop success. That seems to be part of a long running story for him and if so, this would seem to play into it well enough.

Kazusada Higuchi vs. Curt Stallion

Higuchi seems to be a big time guest star. They take turns stretching to start and the much smaller Stallion makes himself scream a bit. Higuchi powers him into the corner for a friendly pat to the chest and it’s time to work on Stallion’s arm. The wristlock into the hammerlock has Stallion screaming even more, so he fails at a shoulder block instead. Higuchi’s shoulder sends Stallion bailing to the floor for a breather.

That means Higuchi gets to follow and chop away, followed by a shot to block Stallion’s suicide dive. It’s been one sided so far as Stallion can’t get around the size and power. Back in and more chops keep Stallion down but he pops back up with an abdominal stretch to to slow Highcuhi for the first time. Actually make it an Octopus Hold but Higuchi is in the ropes in a hurry.

A German suplex takes care of Stallion again (Fan: “STAY DOWN!”) but he’s right back up with his own bridging German suplex for two. Stallion hits a running dropkick in the corner and a DDT gets two more. For some reason Stallion is willing to chop it out again, which goes as well as you might have expected. He even asks Higuchi to chop him and that’s actually makes things worse.

This time though Stallion comes back with a knee to the chest, only to get chopped down again. A running powerslam gives Higuchi two more but Stallion grabs White Noise onto the knee for his own near fall. Stallion’s headbutt connects for another two but he misses a top rope splash. Higuchi grabs a Doctor Bomb for the pin at 11:21.

Rating: C. The fact that Higuchi had a WWN Title match the next day should have told you everything you needed to know about this one. It’s not a great match or anything but it was kind of entertaining to see Higuchi destroy the much smaller Stallion. Higuchi wasn’t flashy but he was intimidating and looked powerful so there was something to him. He would have a better match the next day too.

Post match Stallion gets an ovation. It wasn’t that good of a match.

We look at Josh Briggs beating AR Fox but hurting himself in the process. He was taken out on a stretcher and wound up with a dislocated hip.

Here’s Briggs, on crutches, for a chat. A few weeks ago, he wasn’t sure if he was going to walk again, let alone wrestle, but the fans made him believe that the doctor’s words didn’t matter. They weren’t sure how they were going to get out of the building but then the fans parted like the Red Sea and let him get out for medical treatment. Briggs appreciates the fans more than they will ever know but he promises to win the Evolve Title when (yes when) he comes back.

John Silver/Alex Reynolds vs. AR Fox/Leon Ruff

Silver and Reynolds are now in the Dark Order in AEW so this company probably had a lot to do with getting them jobs there. Hold on though as Fox and Ruff have to dance with the entourage before we’re ready to go. Reynolds works on Fox’s arm to start but Fox flips over and dances some more. Back up and they both miss a bunch of clotheslines but Fox gets one off a backslide.

Fox blocks an RKO attempt and grabs a Codebreaker, allowing Ruff to slingshot in for an elbow to the back. Silver comes in and flips into a choke on Ruff, who slips out for a screaming headlock. A one armed gorilla press has Ruff in trouble but he armdrags his way out without much trouble. Ruff’s multiple springboards armdrag sends Silver outside for a top rope flip dive, with Ruff sticking the landing of course.

Reynolds breaks up a suicide dive though and it’s Ruff in trouble for a change, including a snap suplex to give Reynolds two. A double flipping faceplant gets two on Ruff and it’s back to Silver for some crossface shots to the face into the reverse chinlock. Ruff fights up and manages a hurricanrana to send Silver into Reynolds, meaning it’s off to Fox to clean house.

A Thesz press lets Fox hammer away on Silver and there’s a rolling cutter to drop him again. Fox hits a big no hands dive onto Reynolds and Coast to Coast….well it grazes Silver for two at least. Reynolds gets a blind tag though and superkicks Fox for two. Silver and Reynolds hit a powerbomb/Rough Ryder combination for two with Ruff having to make the save.

Fox grabs a double cutter on Silver and Reynolds but they’re right back with a series of kicks to the head. Everyone winds up in the same corner and it’s Fox superplexing Silver, followed by Lo Mein Pain (springboard Spanish Fly). Ruff’s Swanton sets up For’s 450 to finish Reynolds at 15:48.

Rating: B-. Solid back and forth match here with everyone getting a chance to show off a bit. Fox looks like the established star and comes off like one of the legends around here (appropriate, as that is the case) and Ruff isn’t bad either. Silver and Reynolds got to showcase themselves as well and I can understand how AEW saw something in them, even in limited rolls.

Post match, Fox, Ruff and company dance some more.

Darby Allin vs. Anthony Henry

Priscilla Kelly is with Allin and there must be a winner. Henry’s face is half painted ala Darby’s (albeit the other side for a change of pace), making me think they had mixed up the graphics for a bit. The fans are WAY behind Allin here and Henry bails straight to the floor to start. You don’t do that to Allin, who hits a suicide dive into the barricade. Back in and the Coffin Drop is blocked but Allin flips out of a German suplex and armdrags Henry to the floor. Now the suicide dive can connect so it’s time to fight into the crowd.

Henry drops him ribs first onto the barricade and adds a running double stomp to the back. They get back in with Allin grabbing a brainbuster for a quick double down. Back up and they slug it out with Henry hitting a TKO across the top rope. Allin is back in for a pinfall reversal sequence but he can’t get the Last Supper. A TKO Stunner plants Allin so a Jackknife cover can get two. Henry talks a lot of trash though and gets caught with the flipping Stunner. That’s fine with Henry, who kicks him in the head and stomps away at the head for the referee stoppage at 7:22.

Rating: B-. You really can see the star power in Allin, though the fans kind of died on the finish there. Allin comes off as a star and I’m not sure why you would have him lose here. This felt like the ending to a big feud and with Allin being advertised for a match tomorrow, it’s a rather confusing ending. At least they beat each other up rather well and it felt like a violent match, which is what it should have been given the story they built up.

Post match Henry leaves but here’s Brandi Lauren to jump Kelly to set up their mixed tag match tomorrow.

Referees help Allin stagger to the back.

Angelo Dawkins vs. Colby Corino

Corino is part of the Unwanted and the Street Profits get a huge reaction (NXT and Evolve have a working relationship in case you’re REALLY confused right now). Montez Ford cracks up at the idea that he’s fighting someone as small as Corino and promises to take care of the rest of the Unwanted if they show up.

Corino’s slap is swatted away so Dawkins hits a release gutwrench suplex. Dawkins isn’t done and picks him up for a big swing before the second toss. A kick to the head out of the corner staggers Dawkins and a Meteora puts him down. Some running forearms in the corner don’t do Corino much good though as he gets suplexed again for his efforts. A toss spinebuster finishes Corino at 2:26, as it should have.

Post match Dawkins asks if that’s all there is. If anyone from the Unwanted wants a shot, come get him. Cue WWN Champion JD Drake (not part of the Unwanted) to say the Unwanted isn’t coming out when someone is waiting on them. Drake is here to fight though so let’s have a title match right now.

WWN Title: Angelo Dawkins vs. JD Drake

Drake is defending. They shake hands to start but Drake hits a chop, with Dawkins being glad to reciprocate. Dawkins hits a dropkick and some running elbows in the corner put Drake on the floor early on. Another chop off goes to Drake and he runs Dawkins over to impress the fans. More chops have Dawkins in more trouble, including even more to knock him down. A headbutt gives Drake two and a sliding lariat is good for the same as the pace has slowed a bit.

Dawkins fights back up with some hard shoulders, setting up the spinning splash in the corner. A bulldog gets two and a spear is good for the same but Dawkins can’t follow up. Back up and Drake manages a German suplex but Dawkins pops up and shouts. That earns him a Drill Bit for two, so Drake asks why Dawkins won’t die. Drake puts him on top but gets pulled down with a super spinebuster for two more. Dawkins’ chops just annoy Drake and he cuts Dawkins off with a knee. A Stunner sets up a Cannonball and Drake’s moonsault retains the title at 10:30.

Rating: B-. Not too bad here for an impromptu face vs. face match. They beat each other up well enough here and it’s not like a tag wrestler losing in a singles match is going to do any real damage to him. Drake gets an impressive looking win and you can tell that he means a lot to the fans here. The Street Profits had a nice run in Evolve and it helped turn them into a better team. Now imagine that: getting out and learning from someone else can help young talent get better.

Respect is shown post match.

Video on the Ten Year Anniversary show, which was pretty good.

Cue Stokely Hathaway (legendary manager, now known as Malcolm Bivens in NXT) to say he hasn’t been released. No he isn’t back tonight because the only way he could have come back was to be put into the main event tonight. That was shot down so instead he’s here to say goodbye. Last year he went to Axxess and now he has been signed by NXT and it would not have happened if not for Evolve. Since he’ll be gone soon, he wanted to say goodbye and thank you. Nice moment here and you can tell Hathaway has a deep history around here.

Montez Ford vs. Shane Strickland

Strickland is also Unwanted and is now known as Isaiah Scott. Ford is more serious here and charges at Strickland in the corner to knock him outside. That means choking and forearms against the barricade but Strickland gets in a few chops. That’s not cool with Ford who blocks a big chop and pounds Strickland down again. A sip of the red cup fires Ford up enough to hit the big flip dive and the fans are pleased.

Cue Colby Corino for a distraction though and Strickland pulls him into a modified Rings of Saturn. He even ties Ford’s arms back with his legs and the fans chant GOLDBERG. Even commentary has to explain that by mentioning some pyro going off by mistake. Lenny: “If we’re being honest, it probably would have been Gillberg.” Back up and Strickland hits a running dropkick to the knee in the corner and it’s off to more double arm cranking.

That’s broken up as well so Strickland chops away but Ford gets in a few kicks and a standing moonsault is good for two. Strickland is fine enough to hit a 619 around the post and a hard powerbomb drops Ford again. Ford pops back up and blasts Strickland with a clothesline but snaps off a dropkick before the double knockdown. It’s Strickland up first and slugging away, including taping up his fist.

Ford falls down though and the referee makes Strickland remove the tape. Strickland’s hands are fine enough for a hard German suplex and the Swerve Stomp gets two. The comeback is on but Ford gets knocked hard off the top and down onto the apron. Back up and Ford hits a top rope Fameasser with Strickland in the ropes. That and the huge frog splash is enough to give Ford the pin at 12:44.

Rating: C+. I like both of these guys (Strickland a lot) and again, it shows how much value there is to have these guys in a different promotion to learn something different. That isn’t something that happens very often and I’m really not sure why. How many wrestling promotions would love to feature some NXT talent? Anyway, this was a hard hitting match but it never hit that next gear, leaving it as just pretty good instead of very good.

Tag Team Titles: Unwanted vs. Konosuke Takeshita/Mao Inoue

The Unwanted (Eddie Kingston/Joe Gacy) is defending and the challengers are from DDT. Takeshita (the DDT Champion) starts with Kingston and they go to the mat early on. That means an early standoff so Takeshita hits a forearm to send Kingston outside. Back in and a leg lariat sends Kingston into the corner so it’s off to Mao vs. Gacy. An exchange of shoulders goes to the much bigger Gacy, who blocks a drop toehold without much effort.

Mao sends him outside and it’s back in for both challengers to hammer away. That brings Kingston back in though and Mao gets double teamed for a change, including a big clothesline for two. The chinlock goes on for a bit and it’s time to stomp away but Mao is back up with a running dropkick. A running leg lariat gets Mao out of trouble and it’s the hot(tish) tag off to Takeshita. Kingston comes in as well and is quickly DDTed to the floor, where he pulls Takeshita with him.

Mao dives onto all three and frog splashes Kingston for two back inside. A split legged moonsault gets two more and there’s a German suplex for the same with Gacy throwing Takeshita into the cover for the save. Kingston suplexes Takeshita but it’s a pair of boots in the corner to take Kingston down. Mao adds the 450 for two but walks into a heck of a spinning kick from Gacy.

That just earns him a Blue Thunder Bomb to give Mao two but Gacy blasts Mao with a clothesline for the same. Mao Stuns Gacy, who is right back up with a discus forearm for two more. A nasty looking powerbomb/neckbreaker combination gets two as everything stays broken down. Mao slugs away at both champions at once but it’s a backdrop driver to give Gacy the retaining pin at 13:57.

Rating: B. I liked this one way more than I expected to as the DDT guys looked awesome at times. They played well against the hard hitting champions and I liked the whole thing rather well. The Unwanted has impressed me in the limited amount of time I’ve seen them and this was no exception. Good stuff here and probably the best match of the night so far.

Evolve Title: Austin Theory vs. Kyle O’Reilly

O’Reilly is challenging and yes he does play the air guitar on a belt without actually having a belt. Hold on though as both guys make sure to tell the ring announcer their various nicknames for the Big Match Intros. This includes Kyle dubbing himself the Sleazy Air Guitar Superstar, which of course gets a chant. Feeling out process to start with O’Reilly taking him down but Theory runs away from the threat of a big kick to the head.

Back up and O’Reilly grabs the leg again but can’t get very far with it. A headlock takeover works better for O’Reilly and he does it again because he’s from NXT and likes Takeovers. Theory can’t suplex his way out of the headlock so he powers up, only to get taken down all over again. O’Reilly’s mind games of just outmaneuvering Theory at every step is good stuff. The cross armbreaker sends Theory outside and that’s good for a SLEAZY KYLE chant.

Back in and O’Reilly strikes him down without much trouble as Theory just can’t get anything going so far. A kneebar sends Theory to the rope but he finally scores with a clothesline to get a breather. Theory’s standing moonsault gets two and it’s off to an arm trap chinlock. That doesn’t last long though and Theory chops the heck out of him in the corner. A suplex gets two on O’Reilly and it’s off to a different armbar.

O’Reilly fights up and rolls some butterfly DDTs to put them both down for a bit. The ankle lock doesn’t last long so O’Reilly suplexes him for two more. Theory is back with a buckle bomb but they trade kicks to the face. A kneebar slows Theory down and O’Reilly kicks him in the chest so hard that he sends himself outside. They slug it out again and, after staggering a bit, Theory rocks him enough for Three Seconds Around The World (spinning torture rack bomb).

2K1 (leg trap brainbuster) gets two more on O’Reilly but he takes the knee again. Theory dives for the rope and needs a little walk around the ring. This includes picking up the title and walking away but O’Reilly pulls him back inside. The brainbuster gives O’Reilly two and we hit the ankle lock. Theory gets out again and hits a DDT onto the belt for two, followed Attaksia for the pin to retain at 20:15.

Rating: B. I had a good time with this one and there were times where you believed that the title could change hands. That’s not something you get in showdown matches like this so well done with both guys. What matters here though is giving Theory another line on his resume. It means something to have beaten a big name from NXT so it’s a positive deal for everyone here, as O’Reilly gets a good match and can go right back to NXT’s tag division while pointing to the DDT on the belt. Good main event here and it felt like a bit deal.

Post match Theory jumps O’Reilly but Bobby Fish and Roderick Strong run in for the save. Fish talks about how he and O’Reilly started Evolve (in the first main event) and they will step in when needed. O’Reilly liked that Theory (which he pronounces as Tuh-hear-e) used the title and promises that the Undisputed Era will be back.

Overall Rating: B. This was a fun and entertaining show which never dragged in the slightest. The more I watch of Evolve the more I think I could get into it. You can tell that there are intricate stories throughout the company and a lot of history between the people. It wasn’t exactly on display here, but they did enough to make me interested in seeing more. Well done here and a show worth checking out if you get the time (it’s available for free on their YouTube page).

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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