IMG Credit: WWE

There’s no reason for this one to be the final entry of the year but it’s kind of appropriate as newcomers are all about the future, which is where you go when you get done with the past. There were a lot of fresh faces who sowed up last year and a lot of them had a great deal of potential, meaning the future is rather bright.

Note that in this context, newcomers include people who came to a new promotion and not just people who have only stared wrestling recently.

Brian Pillman Jr.

I know I’m one of the few MLW fans but Pillman is becoming more and more like his dad every day. He’s good in the ring, a solid little talker and is getting more and more offbeat every single week, which makes you think of his dad in a very good thing. The fact that he was very nice to me and we had a chat at WrestleCon in New Orleans didn’t hurt things either. He has a long way to go but what we’ve gotten so far shows potential.

Killer Kross

There aren’t many instances of Impact Wrestling having a story that intrigues me but the X Attacker got my interest. Someone was laying out members of the roster for weeks and it was time to find out who it was. It wound up being Killer Kross, a very intimidating monster who seemed to be impervious to pain and had some great promos. Kross’ in-ring work might not be top level, but it’s more than good enough to back up the incredible character.

Matt Riddle

I don’t think it’s any secret that Riddle is going to be a very big deal in NXT in the near future. What we’ve seen of him already though is more than enough to make me want to see him again though and that’s what matters. He’s young but experienced and has the kind of offbeat style that gets him noticed. The fans love him too, and that’s going to take him very far. He needs more time in WWE, but it’s looking great so far.

Keith Lee

What Frankenstein’s laboratory did they make this guy in? Lee is a huge guy who moves like someone about 150lbs lighter and makes it look easy. He’s got a few losses on his record but having him win a few matches by squashing people is going to be more than enough to fix that. Lee is the kind of athletic freak that you just don’t see very often and WWE knows it. That cool finisher alone should keep him around.

Brian Cage

Speaking of people who look like they were created in a lab, you have this guy in the craziest shape around and can do 619s and moonsaults. Cage is a different kind of freak and while WWE wouldn’t touch him with a ten foot steroid test, it’s certainly fun to watch him be a monster on Impact. That might be as high as he can go, but sweet goodness he’s making it work.

Bandido

He might not be as well known but I haven’t seen a high flier like this in a long time. Bandido does some of the craziest stuff in a ring that I’ve ever seen and makes it look easy. If you can find his match from the WrestleCon Supershow, go out of your way and enjoy one of the best spectacles you’ll see in a long time. Those flips and dives shouldn’t be human and yet he does them all the time. Incredible talent and worth your time.

Ronda Rousey

What else can I say about her? She has the mainstream appeal, she came in like a star and has gone through even further through the roof every single time she’s out there on the big stage. There’s a real chance that we’re coming up on her main eventing Wrestlemania, which isn’t too bad for someone whose in-ring debut came at the show last year. Rousey is a near natural and that’s not something you get to say very often.

And yet, there’s one more ahead of her.

Ricochet

This one dawned on me as I was writing this up and the more I thought about it, the more right it felt. Ricochet is someone with some experience outside of WWE but it didn’t feel like there was even the slightest bit of a transition. He came into NXT in a match of the year candidate and stole the show with one of the spots of the year. Then he had more classic matches and won the North American Title, plus had a quick showdown that teased a shot at the NXT Title. Ricochet is way more than a high flier and could be the top star in NXT in the near future. You don’t see that happen in a place with that kind of talent, but he’s doing it with ease.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

I’m not going to waste your time on this one as there are only three viable options. 2018 was a good year for pay per view as there weren’t a lot of horrible shows. It’s interesting that wrestling companies can get the big stuff so well but have so many problems with the weekly shows. We’ve covered that enough though and now it’s time to get to the big ones.

Backlash

This would be the BEAT THE TRAFFIC show that went nearly an hour longer than it needed to and had one bad match after another with the only two good ones being matches that had been done better before. This was the wrong show in front of the wrong crowd at the wrong time. That Roman Reigns vs. Samoa Joe main event was the expired icing on the spoiled cake and made this one even worse than I thought was possible.

Greatest Royal Rumble

Oh you knew we were getting to Saudi Arabia. Tell me: other than Strowman winning and Titus’ funny fall, what else happened on this show? Well we had Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar ruining a cage match, and a far too long main event. This show set the WWE Saudi Arabia relationship off on a bad foot and it was only going to get worse.

That worse would be the worst of the year.

Crown Jewel

Like it was going to be anything else. I didn’t get to watch this show live as I had to take care of some stuff outside of town. My wife read me the results as we came home and we were having trouble keeping the car straight from laughing at how stupid the whole thing was. There was a tournament won by Shane McMahon (who wasn’t involved in the first place), Brock Lesnar becoming Universal Champion again, and a disaster of a main event that is going to be on the list of all time awful ones. This was a different kind of bad and nothing really came close all year.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWEGen

This is a weird one as it takes us both in and out of the ring. It’s more along the lines of the biggest headline, which could be either good or bad. Some of these are a lot more widespread than others but they’re all important in one way or another. That makes this rather interesting in a way, as some stories have more ramifications than they would originally seem to.

Shawn Michaels Returns To The Ring

This is one of those things where you almost never believed it could happen. Michaels had the perfect retirement back in the day and had been teased to return to the ring almost ever since. Now though he actually got back in the ring….and it didn’t matter whatsoever for the most part. It was a one off (for now) appearance and while Shawn looked decent, it came on such a nothing show that it was more of a disappointment than anything else.

Ronda Rousey Is Awesome

I said this one in Surprise Of The Year but who in the world expected her to be this good? Rousey coming over to WWE made some headlines in mainstream sports but I don’t think anyone imagined she would be so awesome so fast. Rousey hasn’t had a bad match yet and has run through everyone in front of her like they’re nothing. I don’t know how much better she can get, but it’s going to be fun to watch.

WWE TV Ratings Plummet

I didn’t really consider this one a strong contender because it happens every year. At the same time though, it never gets this bad. You can’t be surprised that the ratings got this bad because the shows were just so bad. There was nothing good about them more often than not and WWE didn’t exactly go out of their way to make things better. At the end of the day you can’t get around bad wrestling TV and that’s what WWE found out in a hard way this time. It’s getting a little better, but without things really changing it’s not going to fix things.

Roman Reigns Vacates The Universal Title

Now we’re getting somewhere as this is the kind of thing that changes wrestling companies. Reigns is gone for the time being and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. WWE has spent years centering the company around Reigns and now that he’s gone, WWE is really starting to feel the burn. Reigns’ health is what really matters here though, as there’s nothing good about having any wrestler, especially one in the prime of his career, taken out like this. I hope Reigns gets better so it can be an even bigger headline soon.

Daniel Bryan Returns To The Ring

This is a bigger one than Shawn for me as I never would have believed it could happen. While it’s certainly a surprise, it also offers something bigger. Bryan was injured for so long and it seemed hopeless yet he came back (and got awesome again under a new character). It gives hope for others whose careers seem to be over, which could make things a lot more interesting in the future.

WWE FOX Deal

WWE has a history with being on network TV but the idea of a weekly show is unheard of for them. It’s a huge step forward and a huge financial boom for the company. With the money coming in there are also loftier expectations, which could mean we get a better Smackdown going forward. I want to see where this goes, but it’s already gone pretty far to start.

All In Sells Out Almost Instantly

Earlier in the year, All In was announced and sounded like something with potential but nothing that big. Then it sold out in something like half an hour (I was thinking about going to the show and then saw how fast it was gone, much to my own shock) and it was clear that they had something special. The show being really good was just a bonus, because the show being such a success was what really mattered.

That’s all wrestling stuff though. Now we need to get to what really matters.

Controversy Over Crown Jewel

This is the kind of thing that went beyond wrestling as it made mainstream headlines. It made WWE look like a money hungry company (it’s not like other companies aren’t the same) who was willing to ignore everything else going on involving a man’s death for the sake of a huge check. This was a disaster on every point, with the show being a nightmare making it even worse. WWE is going to keep going to Saudi Arabia and it’s going to look bad every single time. But at least the stock went up or something right?

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

And then there’s all the awful stuff, which really is something you can’t escape. Some of these things are downright horrible and some of the worst angles I can remember in a long time. This year was particularly terrible in some instances, which is covering a lot of ground given how bad some of these have been over the years. There were so many options this year that I trimmed off some that would have been favorites in previous years. It’s been that bad.

Smackdown Swept At Survivor Series And…..Nothing

This is a combination of two things. First of all you have the problem of the Kickoff Show match not counting towards the score (after it counted towards the score), but then there’s the fact that Smackdown got swept. WWE had hyped up the fact that Raw had won a few times and then they did again in even more dominant fashion. There was no drama at Survivor Series and the latter half of the show felt unimportant. Then a grand total of nothing happened as a result. Survivor Series is a major show, but they made it feel less important than Starrcade.

DX vs. Brothers of Destruction

Where do I even begin with this one? Let’s see: the youngest person involved was just south of fifty years old, the match was a disaster, it brought Shawn Michaels out of retirement for a match that didn’t seem to mean anything, and there’s the whole building a match with scenes in front of a grave on a show whose controversy centered around a journalist being murdered. I think we can move on now.

Drake Maverick and Bobby Roode’s Robe

This doesn’t need an explanation. It was bad.

Brock Lesnar As Universal Champion

Lesnar spent most of the year as champion despite the fans not exactly being thrilled with what’s going on. I know you don’t have to have the World Champion on TV every week, but you would think that they would have him show up every now and then instead of just letting him be around every few months. That’s fine every now and then but as of Wrestlemania this year, it’s going to be two years (save for two months) of Lesnar as champion mostly out of residence. That’s insane and shows no sign of slowing down.

Bayley and Sasha Banks’ Unwild Ride

Note that this is NOT the fault of the wrestlers. They’re stuck on this treadmill of bad booking and there’s no end in sight for it to this day. Their feud with the Riott Squad will likely continue for several more months because WWE doesn’t see the need to change anything. Other than that one week where Sasha was in love with Bayley, nothing has changed and that’s such a waste of everyone involved.

But at least there’s something to waste, unlike on the winner.

Baron Corbin Runs Raw

I don’t remember the last story that got to me like this. The biggest issue here is very simple: Baron Corbin isn’t that good. He’s a perfectly serviceable big man, but he was the centerpiece of Raw for months. What WWE sees in him is beyond me, but he’s still near the top of the card even after being removed from power. They eventually turned him into a scapegoat for the lousy booking because that’s the kind of missing the point that WWE can pull off. This was terrible and easily the worst thing WWE did all year.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Shut up and talk. While the matches are important, it’s the promos that help build things up. The angles set things in motion but without the promos, the stories wouldn’t be able to hold up as well. There were some gems this year as promos shifted a bit more towards long formats and that made for a great year, both in WWE and NXT.

Before we get to the main list, a quick honorable mention to Shinsuke Nakamura’s “Sorry, no speak English”. It’s just one line so I hesitate to call it a promo, but I was in stitches.

Daniel Bryan Is Medically Cleared – Smackdown – March 20

This was all emotion and shock, as I didn’t believe it could actually happen. Bryan was back after so many years and you can imagine how long he had wanted to make this speech. It was perfectly done and something I never thought I’d see. Bryan is an underrated talker as he seems so genuine with what he says. That can make for a great promo and given that Bryan had this much emotion involved, it’s hard to get much better.

Roman Reigns Vacates The Universal Title – Raw – October 22

I’m not sure how to separate the real life aspects of this from the character work, but this was one of the best promos Reigns has ever given. That probably comes from all of the real emotions involved and it’s easy to see why. This is one of those game changing moments and while you can’t say Reigns sold anything, he spoke from the heart and it was an actually emotional moment.

The New Daniel Bryan – Smackdown – November 20

Remember when Bryan was supposed to not be great on the mic? This was another outstanding showcase for Bryan as he explained his heel turn to near perfection. Bryan ranted about the fans not being there for him after everything he did and saying that it was all about the end results, which has been a great mindset for a heel since wrestling began. Bryan’s incredible run continues in a way that few expected, as he somehow surpasses his work from eight months prior.

Samoa Joe Reads A Story – Smackdown – September 11

This is something I’ve seen done a few times before and I always like it. Joe had a book readyt o read AJ about how he was going to choke AJ out and become WWE Champion as AJ’s family watched. Joe is one of the best promos in wrestling as you believe everything he says (even after he lost a bunch of matches) and that can make these things all the more intimidating. The promos against AJ and his family were downright creepy and this was the best of them all.

But there’s one creepier thing.

Johnny Gargano Explains Himself – NXT – November 7

One of the best things a promo can do is take things outside the arena. There are only so many times you can look at the same sets and the same backstage areas before it stops working. Moving things elsewhere makes things feel special and that’s what happened here, as Johnny walked along the same path where he attacked Aleister Black weeks before. Johnny explained everything and showed us how deep he was sinking into the darkness. It made sense, it made me want to see more, and it made me believe that Gargano was actually evil. Magnificent work here and the promo of the year.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

It’s been a much stronger year for this category, which is rather nice to see. It’s not so much more time being dedicated to the area but more that the teams and groups are getting so good that it’s hard to ignore them. There’s still work to do in WWE, but even what we got there was solid stuff. I’m not sure it’s enough to get around the rest of the wrestling world though.

Young Bucks

I’m still not wild on them a lot of the time but they’ve toned down the Superkick Party stuff a lot, which has led to some much more entertaining matches. The majority of their 2018 was spent on promotional work rather than anything in the ring, but it’s still been a good year with more of their crazy athleticism. While they’re not for me, I can certainly appreciate how popular they are and how entertaining they can be n the ring.

Undisputed Era

The Era is an interesting group as you have a team who has all the talent in the world but never quite breaks through to the next side. They won a lot of gold in 2018 with the North American Title for Adam Cole and the Tag Team Titles for Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong (plus winning a tournament they weren’t in). These guys could be on the main roster tomorrow and be fine, but for now we get more of their rather impressive NXT run, which isn’t a bad thing.

New Day

You kind of have to have these guys in here, even if they’re far away from their peak at this point. New Day has transcended the tag team division but they’re not to the point where you should split them up because there’s still a ton of value there. They have good matches, they’re entertaining on the mic (I still don’t get the pancakes) and they still move merchandise. They’re just fun to watch when they’re on their game, which is more often than not.

Bludgeon Brothers

I had the Bar written down in my notes before I started this and then realized that the Bludgeon Brothers had a better year in just about every way. The Brothers are a big power team and held the Tag Team Titles for a longer share of the year. They only lost the belts because Rowan got hurt and you could imagine them still holding them into the new year if that hadn’t been the case. This was the way to use Harper and Rowan that had eluded WWE for years and it’s nice to see them finally figure it out.

Usos

I know it’s a three team division on Smackdown and these guys only held the titles for the first third of the year, but for my money they’re still the best team in WWE and one of the best the company has ever had. There’s a natural chemistry there and the two of them work really well together. They’re getting even better too, which is almost hard to believe. Just move them to Raw already so they can have some fresh matches though. It’s really not that hard.

Lucha Bros

As good as WWE’s tag division was this year, this was a two team race and there wasn’t much doubt about it. Pentagon and Fenix are an interesting team as they’re awesome on their own but even better when they’re together. Like multiple teams on this list, you get so much stronger chemistry between actual brothers and that’s not surprising. It’s like these two think as one and that makes every match they have all the more entertaining. They’re great, and they’ve shown that everywhere they’ve gone.

But there’s a better choice.

LAX

The more I think about it, the more these guys impress me. They’re just so good and so fun to watch and like others, they keep getting better. This just isn’t something that you see happen with teams already on such a high level but LAX keeps doing it. Konnan is a great addition to the team for the talking part and they make a great combination. I love watching these guys and they’ve been by far the best thing about Impact all year. Go find their stuff with the OGz and the Lucha Bros as it’s some of the top tag wrestling I’ve seen in a long time.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

So this one is coming after Wrestler Of The Year, which was the Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa race. Well guess where we are all over again. You’re going to see those names a lot in this and I don’t think that requires much of an explanation. This was actually an incredible year for in-ring work and NXT ran away with just about every accolade you can imagine (again). But which topped them all?

Sweet goodness where do I start?

Aleister Black vs. Adam Cole – Takeover: Philadelphia

I’m going to say this a lot but what a match. The idea here was Cole couldn’t hang in a fight with a brawler like Black and that was pretty much exactly what happened. It wound up being an incredible brawl with Cole throwing everything he had at him and getting his head kicked off, as so many people had felt. NXT hadn’t started doing the violent matches as frequently yet so this was a treat.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Velveteen Dream – Takeover: WarGames II

This is a match that shouldn’t have been as good but they pulled it off anyway because both guys know how to bring it on the big stage. Dream was one of the least likely title contenders (Did you really believe he was winning here?) but he had some great near falls and nearly pulled off the huge upset. That’s the sign of a great match: when you know where it’s going to end but get sucked into it anyway. They pulled it off here, which I didn’t expect.

Velveteen Dream vs. Ricochet – Takeover: Chicago

With all of the athletic spectacles to behold this year, it was nice to have one that had a clearer story. This match was built up on the idea of both guys wanting to steal the show and get all the spotlight, which was Dream’s eventual downfall. Ricochet may be the best high flier in the world right now and Dream tried to hang in the air with him, eventually causing himself to crash and burn. It’s an incredible showcase, as Ricochet continues to become one of the brightest stars anywhere.

North American Title Ladder Match – Takeover: New Orleans

Meltzer gave this five stars and it might be the fourth best match of the year in NXT alone. I was in the arena for this one and I’ve never gasped so much, including the time I saw Shane McMahon dive off of the Cell. This was the spotfest to end all spotfests (not named TLC or involving a certain trio of tag teams) with the place getting more and more into it until Adam Cole gave the fans exactly what they wanted. Go and watch this one if you love a great bit of insanity with some of the coolest spots you’ll see in a long time. The thirty minutes feels like less than half of that and it just doesn’t stop.

Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa – Takeover: Chicago

We’ll get to round one later but here we have the rematch. The first match was about emotion and the two getting their hands on each other. This one was about two guys beating the fire out of each other and hurting one another as much as they could. They destroyed the ring and some of the arena but it evened the score and meant that we would be seeing a third match. After what they did the first two times, it’s not like you had to ask twice.

Johnny Gargano vs. Andrade Cien Almas – Takeover: Philadelphia

Ten years ago, Royal Rumble 2008 was built around the idea of Jeff Could Win. Well this was Johnny Could Win, as he was coming off a horrible losing streak but if he had his head on straight, he could pull off anything. Johnny came into Philadelphia with his head on straighter than ever before but Almas knocked it off time and time again. That set up some of the most dramatic near falls that you’ll ever see and an absolutely incredible match that could have gone either way.

Like it could be anything else.

Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa – Takeover: New Orleans

I don’t know what to say here. The build was nearly a year in the making and these two wanted to kill each other. That’s nearly what they did too, with one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. From Ciampa coming out to no music and just soaking in the hatred to the YOU DESERVE IT chants when Ciampa landed on bare concrete to the awesome near fall on Gargano to Gargano winning, going to the stage to pose and looking over his shoulder to avoid Ciampa attacking him again, I haven’t been on a roller coaster like this at a show ever before and I can’t imagine I ever will be again.

Then again I said that about Takeover not being topped and couldn’t have been more wrong so I’m probably off again here.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

We’re hitting a big one here as there isn’t much more important than the Wrestler Of The Year. That’s what it all comes down to: who had the best year all around the card. There are going to be some usual suspects in here but there might be one or two who surprise you. I mean, it’s not very likely but I have to sound a big less obvious.

Seth Rollins

If this was the first half of the year, Rollins would have been a nearly runaway winner. There was no one having the match of the night week in and week out like Rollins was doing and he made it look easy. It’s entirely possible that he’ll be facing Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title this year and after the first part of 2018 (and a good second part), he’s more than earned it.

AJ Styles

Well yeah of course. How can you not have someone who was almost World Champion for the entire year on here? Styles had one great match after another in 2018 and it would be insane to not have him make a pretty high appearance. It was another incredible year in a career of them and somehow he might be getting even better with age. That’s, dare I say it, phenomenal.

Tommaso Ciampa

I don’t remember the last time I saw a better villain. Ciampa is pure evil and there hasn’t been a better one in a VERY long time. He came into the year evil and left it as champion, having taken the title from Aleister Black with the accidental help of his former best friend Johnny Gargano. Ciampa is on the roll of a lifetime and I really want to see where this big story winds up, because it could have ended eight months ago but I could go for another eight months. That doesn’t happen ever, but he’s pulled it off here.

I really, really wanted to go with a tie but couldn’t bring myself to do it.

Johnny Gargano

What else can you say about him? Gargano vs. Ciampa is a battle between in-ring skills and character work but Gargano was just slightly better. Not only did Gargano have every great match with Ciampa, but he had a better match against Black and another masterpiece with Andrade Cien Almas. Throw in the outstanding descent into the darkness and Gargano had an all time year. It might seem like a layup, but it’s really that good.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

This is pretty much spot of the year without taking place in a match, though sometimes there’s a bit of a twist involved. In this case you might have something in a match, but at the same time it’s something with a deeper meaning. That could be multiple different things, but in this case there were some major moments, many of which were downright shocking.

Steve Austin Stuns The McMahons – Raw 25

This one isn’t the biggest or really a contender, but it’s something that came on one of the biggest episodes of the show ever and deserves at least a mention. Austin Stunning McMahon over the years was a tradition and something that had to happen one more time. Vince saying he’s an old man but his son Shane was young and healthy was hilarious and the fact that Austin (who looked better than he did back in the day) didn’t say a word was even better.

DIY Meets In The Middle On Aleister Black – NXT – December 19

There are moments that make you sit up and go OOO and this was one of them. The saga of DIY is one of the best stories that WWE has done in forever and I want to see where it goes. Gargano has hated Ciampa for the better part of a year but now he’s starting to act like him. When you go from that to Ciampa helping Gargano win a big match, it’s quite the moment that makes you wonder what is going on.

Ronda Rousey’s Debut – Royal Rumble

You knew Rousey was going to be on here and while the in-ring debut is incredible, the reaction of Bad Reputation blaring to end the show was something else. I know the pointing at the sign looked horrible but to see Rousey show up after being told that she wasn’t going to be there was something special. No one knew how good she was going to be, though it was clearly a big deal with everything they had.

The New Daniel Bryan – Smackdown – November 13

I know the explanation got rave reviews (including from me) but I like the heel turn more. This was the kind of moment where you sit there looking at the TV for a little bit and wonder how this could happen. Bryan turning didn’t seem possible but he managed to make it work, and is arguably a better heel than he is a face. The turn has worked since then, but that first moment where he won the title (shocking in itself) was hard to top.

Becky Lynch Invades Raw – Monday Night Raw – November 12

I was going back and forth on this one and you could pick either this or the winner with no arguments either way. Becky Lynch had the year of all years in the women’s division and this was her crowning moment. To come into Raw, unannounced, and wreck the place made it clear that this was something different. Lynch was a monster and the first person to leave Ronda Rousey laying. (What should have been) the last shot of the show with the bloody Lynch posing in the crowd as Rousey looked up at her should have set up the fight of all fights with the moment/image of the year, but Nia Jax had to screw things up. Either way, this was incredible and is only topped by one thing.

Daniel Bryan Walks That Aisle – Smackdown – March 20

I’ve seen a lot of wrestling in my day. Like, a ridiculous amount really. There isn’t much that I haven’t seen in one form or another and it takes a lot to truly surprise me. I did not believe that this would ever happen and I was wrong. This truly and honestly stunned me as I never in my life would have believed this would have been the case. Bryan actually being able to get back in the ring after so many years didn’t seem possible and then it happened. It’s made me stop saying that something is never going to happen because if this can happen, anything in wrestling can.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

I know it’s one of the more basic ideas but at the end of the day (or year in this case), most wrestling feuds revolve around titles. It’s what most of the people wrestle for and some of the title reigns are outstanding highlights of the year. As is the case with everything though, you can decide which is best and that’s where I come in.

Undisputed Era – NXT Tag Team Titles

I know the Ascension’s record is out of reach (and the Undisputed Era isn’t making it out of Phoenix with the titles) but if you ignore the three week reign by Moustache Mountain (those pesky Brits), Undisputed Era has held the titles since November 2017. That’s a heck of a run in a division that usually changes over so quickly. They’re a great team and the kind of guys who could work very well on the main roster as well.

Seth Rollins – Intercontinental Title

This was the reign where you knew you were going to get something special no matter what happened. Rollins was on the roll of a lifetime in the first half of 2018 as he was back from his knee surgery at full speed and could have a great match with anyone. Then came a feud with Dean Ambrose about how cities smelled and it kind of went away, but the time he spent as champion was incredible.

Tommaso Ciampa – NXT Title

Now this is more of a mixture of in-ring work and character stuff, which is about as good as you can get in wrestling. Of course there’s the time with Gargano, but at the same time Ciampa had a great match with Velveteen Dream and even a good one with Otis Dozovic. His mic work has destroyed that though and turned him into one of the best characters in recent memory. I’m not sure how long he’s going to hold the title but at this rate, Finn Balor’s record may be in jeopardy.

Pete Dunne – United Kingdom Title

There were two real options here and the one thing holding me back on Dunne was how he doesn’t defend the title all that often. That has changed in the latter half of the year but it’s still not as frequent as most. If Dunne was around full time, this would pretty easily be his but for now, he’s the part time mega star and that’s only good for really close and one of the best title reigns in a long time.

AJ Styles – Smackdown World Title

Yeah this one might have been obvious. Styles held the title for a year plus and most of 2018, including some of the best matches of the year. There were some awesome efforts against Shinsuke Nakamura, Samoa Joe and Daniel Bryan, which probably had something to do with how good the matches were. That being said, it takes two people to have a great match and that tended to be the case every time the champ was in the ring.

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

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

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

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